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BV  1520  .T77  1888 
Trumbull,  H.  Clay  1830-1903 
The  Sunday-school 


YALE  LECTURES  ON  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL 


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YALE   LECTURES   ON  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL 
THE 

SUNDAY-SCHOOL 

ITS    ORIGIN,  MISSION,  METHODS,  AND 
AUXILIARIES 


The  Lyman  Beecher  Lectures 

Before  Yale  Divinity  School 
for  i88S 


By  H.  clay  TJRUMBULL 

Editor  of  The  Sunday  School  Times,  Author  of  Kadesh  Barnea, 
Tlie  Blood  Covenant,  Teaching  ar/d  Teachers,  etc. 


PHILADELPHIA 

JOHN  D.  WATTLES,  Publisher 

1888 


Copyright,  i8 


H.  CLAY  TRUMBULL. 


PREFACE. 


These  Lectures  are,  in  their  present  form,  an  immediate 
result  of  a  special  and  unexpected  call  from  the  Faculty 
of  Yale  Divinity  School.  Yet  they  are  in  reality  the 
growth  of  years;  and  because  of  this  fact  their  practical 
value  ought  to  be  the  greater. 

It  is  just  thirty  years  ago,  on  the  day  of  this  writing, 
that  I  entered  the  Sunday-school  field  as  the  field  of  my 
chosen  life-work.  Already  I  had  been  interested  in  this 
work  from  my  very  start  in  the  Christian  life ;  but  now  I 
was  led  to  give  myself  to  the  promoting  of  its  interests, 
to  the  abandonment  of  all  other  occupations.  To  this 
decision  I  was  influenced  by  my  belief  that  the  Sunday- 
school  is  an  agency  approved  of  God  for  the  evangel- 
izing and  the  religious  training  of  the  race;  and  that  it  is 
peculiarly  and  pre-eminently  adapted  to  the  needs  of  our 
American  communities.  Hardly  had  I  entered  my  new 
field,  however,  when  I  was  met  by  the  criticism,  or  the 
objection,  that  the  Sunday-school  is  in  rivalry  with  the 
mission  of  the  family  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  the  ministry 
on  the  other,  and  that  at  the  best  it  is  a  poor  substitute 
for  either. 

These  criticisms  at  once  turned  me  to  the  careful  study 
of  the  agency  in  the  prosecution  of  which  I  had  en- 
listed. My  belief  in  the  value  of  the  agency  was  a  cause, 
and  not  a  result,  of  my  being  engaged  in  it.     If  there  was 

V 


VI  PREFACE. 

a  better  agency  available  in  the  plans  of  God,  I  wanted 
to  change  my  course  accordingly.  And  so  it  was  that  I 
entered  upon  a  critical  examination  of  the  teachings  of 
the  Bible  and  of  outside  history,  in  order  to  learn  more 
surely  what  was  God's  chiefest  provision  for  the  ingather- 
ing and  for  the  religious  upbringing  of  the  children  of 
men.  The  more  I  studied  the  more  I  found,  in  the  teach- 
ings of  Scripture  and  of  history,  which  was  at  variance 
with  traditional  practices  and  views,  but  which  must  be 
accepted  by  him  who  would  follow  God's  word  and 
the  leadings  of  sound  reason.  I  came  to  realize,  as  never 
before,  that  the  Sunday-school  of  to-day  substantially 
represents  God's  chosen  agency,  from  of  old,  for  the  evan- 
gelizing and  for  the  instruction  of  those  whom  his  Church 
is  set  to  reach  and  to  rear ;  and  in  this  new  conviction  I 
gained  steadily  in  devotedness  to  the  work  which  I  now 
deemed  God's  work  pre-eminently. 

Just  here  I  may  properly  cite  the  testimony,  in  this 
direction,  of  one  whose  opinion  will  be  recognized  as 
worth  so  many  times  more  than  my  own.  The  Rev.  Dr. 
Horace  Bushnell  was  good  enough  to  have  a  kind  and 
generous  personal  interest  in  me  from  the  beginning  of 
my  Christian  life.  After  the  years  of  my  army  chaplaincy 
(which  alone  was  my  connection  with  the  ordained  min- 
istry) he  repeatedly  urged  me  to  devote  myself  to  the 
labors  of  the  pulpit  and  of  the  pastorate ;  but  I  was  con- 
fident that  the  Sunday-school  field  was  where  God  would 
have  me  labor,  and  so  there  I  remained.  As  the  years 
passed  by,  Dr.  Bushnell's  estimate  of  the  idea  which  is  back 
of  the  Sunday-school  was  much  enlarged,  and  he  had  a 
new  sense  of  its  relative  importance.  Meeting  me  one  day 
not  long  before  his  death,  Dr.  Bushnell  said:    "  Trumbull, 


PREFACE.  Vii 

you  knew  better  than  I  did  where  the  Lord  wanted  you. 
I  honestly  thought  the  pulpit  was  a  bigger  place  for  you, 
and  I  tried  to  get  you  into  it.  But  now  I've  come  to  see 
that  the  work  you  are  in  is  the  greatest  work  in  the 
world."  And  after  a  moment's  pause  he  added,  "  Some- 
times I  think  it's  the  only  work  there  is  in  the  world." 
And  many  another  has  come,  in  these  later  years,  to 
see  this  truth  as  this  great  thinker  saw  it. 

When  I  had  been  called  to  the  editorial  advocacy  and 
exposition  of  the  Sunday-school,  my  gathered  material 
for  the  showing  of  the  historic  development  of  the  modern 
Sunday-school  was  laid  aside;  and  I  thought  it  would 
never  be  put  into  any  permanent  form.  But  the  sum- 
mons from  Yale  to  deliver  a  series  of  lectures  on  the 
Sunday-school  and  its  Auxiliaries,  as  the  Lyman  Beecher 
Lecturer  for  1888,  was  a  providential  call  to  the  taking  up 
and  the  systematizing  and  the  completing  of  this  material ; 
and  the  volume  herewith  is  an  outcome  of  that  summons. 

Both  in  my  earlier  and  in  my  later  investigations,  I 
have  been  materially  aided  by  specialists  in  one  field  aiid 
another  of  research.  Among  these  helpers  to  whom  I 
am  particularly  indebted,  I  mention  gratefully  Professor 
Dr.  J.  A.  Broadus,  of  the  Southern  Baptist  Theological 
Seminary,  Louisville,  Kentucky;  Professor  Dr.  M.  B. 
Riddle,  of  the  Western  (Presbyterian)  Theological  Semi- 
nary, Allegheny,  Pennsylvania;  Professor  Dr.  J.  Rendel 
Harris,  of  Haverford  College;  the  Rev.  Dr.  E.  T.  Bartlett, 
Dean  of  the  Episcopal  Divinity  School,  and  Professor 
Dr.  J.  F.  Garrison,  of  the  same  institution ;  Professor  Dr. 
W.  J.  Mann,  of  the  Lutheran  Theological  Seminary ;  the 
Rev.  Dr.  A,  Spaeth,  President  of  the  Lutheran  General 
Council;  Professor  Dr.  R.  E.  Thompson,  of  the  Univer- 


viii  PREFACE. 

sity  of  Pennsylvania,  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Morris  Jastrow, 
of  Philadelphia;  also  my  colleague  in  editorial  work, 
Professor  Dr.  H.  V.  Hilprecht,  and  my  brother,  Dr.  J, 
Hammond  Trumbull,  of  Hartford,  Connecticut.  In  the 
collecting  and  verifying  of  all  the  Talmudic  citations,  I 
have  had  valuable  assistance  from  Dr.  Jacob  Mayer,  a 
careful  rabbinical  scholar.  In  my  huntings  for  books 
of  reference  I  have  received  special  assistance  from  the 
Rev.  Joseph  H.  Dulles,  of  Princeton,  New  Jersey;  Mr. 
James  MacAlister,  of  Philadelphia;  and  Mr.  Benjamin 
Clarke,  of  the  London  Sunday  School  Union.  In  search- 
ing out  and  verifying  references  generally,  as  well  as  in 
the  preparation  of  the  bibliographical  and  topical  in- 
dexes, I  acknowledge  important  aid  from  the  Rev.  E.  M. 
Fergusson.  The  mention  of  these  names  is  an  indication 
of  the  number  of  skilled  workers  who  have  contributed 
to  whatever  of  thoroughness  or  of  accuracy  there  is  in 
the  volume  as  it  stands. 

The  hearty  welcome  which  these  Lectures  received 
from  those  before  whom  they  were  delivered,  justifies 
the  belief  that  they  will  be  found  to  have  a  value  to  those 
who  read  them  in  their  present  form.  They  are  printed 
substantially  as  delivered,  with  the  addition  of  foot-notes, 
in  proof  of  the  correctness  of  their  position. 

H.  CLAY  TRUMBULL. 

Philadelphia,  September  i,  1888, 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Request  for  Publication ii 

Preface    v 

LECTURE  I. 

THE    SUNDAY-SCHOOL:      ITS    JEWISH    ORIGIN    AND 
ITS    CHRISTIAN    ADOPTION. 

Definition  of  a  Sunday-school. — Rabbinical  Traditions  of  its 
Primeval  Prominence. — Old  Testament  Light  on  its  Path- 
way.— Its  Mentions  in  Ancient  History. — Its  Prominence 
in  the  Synagogue  Plans. —  Its  Primal  Curriculum. —  Its 
Essential  Methods  of  Working. —  Its  Fundamental  Im- 
portance in  the  Jewish  Economy. — ^Jesus  as  a  Scholar  in 
the  Sunday-school. — As  a  Teacher  there. —  His  Methods  of 
Teaching. — His  Command  to  Start  Sunday-schools  Every- 
where.— Apostolic  Sunday-school  Work. — Sunday-schools 
as  the  Basis  of  the  Christian  Church 3 

LECTURE  n. 

THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL:     SEVENTEEN    CENTURIES 
OF    ITS    VARYING    PROGRESS. 

Christian  Beginnings  in  Gentile  Communities. — Questions  and 
Answers  in  Catechumenical  Instruction. — Questions  and 
Answers  in  Pulpit  Preaching. — Methods  of  Teaching  in 
Alexandria. —  Evangehzing  by  Mission -schools. —  Ritual- 

ix 


X  CONTENTS. 

ism  Overshadows  Bible  Study. — The  Dark  Ages  a  Conse- 
quence.— Gleams  of  Light  in  Darkness. — Revival  of  Schools 
in  the  Refonnation.  —  Catechisms  Multiplied.  —  Romish 
Recognition  of  the  School  Idea. — Catechisms  as  a  Barrier 
to  Catechetical  Teaching. — A  Lesson  from  New  England. 
— Superiority  of  Teaching  over  Preaching  in  the  Training 
Process. — A  New  Decline  of  the  Bible-school  Agency     .     47 

LECTURE  III. 

THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL:      ITS    MODERN    REVIVAL 
AND    EXPANSION. 

Religious  Declension  in  the  Eighteenth  Century, — Mid-century 
Revivals. — Zinzendorf  s  and  Wesley's  Work  among  Chil- 
dren.— The  Sunday-school  Beginnings  of  Robert  Raikes. 
— Nature  and  Progress  of  this  Movement. — Its  Influence 
in  England  and  Elsewhere. — Sunday-schools  in  America. 
— Illustrations  of  their  Power. — As  Seen  by  Foreigners. — 
As  Imitated  Abroad. — Improved  Sunday-school  Methods. 
— The  International  Lesson  System. — Growth  in  Popular 
Bible  Study. — The  Sunday-school  of  To-day      ....    97 

LECTURE   IV. 

THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL:      ITS    INFLUENCE   ON 
THE    FAMILY. 

Supposed  Rivalry  of  Sunday-school  and  Family  Influence. — 
The  Family,  God's  Primal  Training  Agency. — The  Church- 
school  Divinely  Ordained  as  a  Complement  of  the  Family. 
— The  Christian  Church  a  Larger  Family. — Family  Reh- 
gion  Prior  to  the  Modern  Sunday-school  and  Afterwards,  in 
England.— -In  Ireland. — In  Scotland. — In  Wales. — In  the 
United  States. — God's  Agencies  Never  Conflict. — Family 
Religion  Pivots  on  Sunday-school  Efficiency. — Cause  of 
the  Popular  Error  at  this  Point.  —  Mythical  Boundary 
of  the  Good  Old  Time.  —  Claims  of  the  Sunday-school 
under  the  Great  Commission I45 


CONTENTS.  XI 

LECTURE  V. 

THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL:      ITS    MEMBERSHIP   AND 
ITS    MANAGEMENT. 

The  Missionary  Feature  of  Modern  Sunday-school  Beginnings. 
— Church  and  Mission  and  Pioneer  Sunday-schools  of  To- 
day.— What  Is  and  what  Ought  to  Be. — Children  and  the 
Child-like  Belong  in  the  Sunday-school. — Power  of  Num- 
bers in  Promoting  Sympathy. — Taking  in  Truth  by  Ab- 
sorption.— Evangelizing  through  the  Sunday-school. — Two 
Specimen  Schools  in  Connecticut. — How  Sunday-schools 
are  Managed. — How  they  Ought  to  Be. — Church  Control. — 
Church  Direction. — Church  Support. — The  Ideal  Future     .   187 


LECTURE  VL 

THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL:      ITS   TEACHERS   AND 
THEIR    TRAINING. 

Class-grouping  an  Essential  of  the  Sunday-school. — Available 
Teaching  Material. — Child-likeness  the  True  Standard. — 
Great  Truths  Best  Apprehended  in  Childhood. — Young 
Teachers  have  an  Advantage. — Wise  Classifying  of  Teach- 
ers.— Supposed  Lack  of  Good  Teachers. — Where  the  Blame 
Rests. — How  to  Train  Teachers. — Normal  Classes. — Prac- 
tice Classes. — Preparation  Classes. — Importance,  Methods, 
and  Feasibility  of  the  Weekly  Teachers'-  Meeting. — Selec- 
tion of  Teachers. — Installing  of  Teachers. — Gain  of  High- 
est Standard 215 


LECTURE  VII. 

THE    PASTOR    AND    THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL, 

Meaning  of  the  Term  "Pastor." — The  True  Pastor's  Sphere 
and  Duties. — A  Pastor's  Responsibility  for  his  Sunday- 
school. — Gain  of  Setting  Others  at  Work. — Dr.  Stephen  H. 


xil  CONTENTS. 

Tyng's  Pastoral  Work  in  his  Sunday-school. — A  Scene  in 
Plymouth  Church. — A  Specimen  Church-school  and  its 
Pastor. — Dr.  Constans  L.  Goodell  as  a  Sunday-school 
Pastor. — No  One  Way  for  All  Pastors. — Suggested  Ways 
of  Working. — Making  the  Closing  Impression  in  the  Desk. 
— Recognizing  the  Place  and  Work  of  Others. — Getting 
and  Giving  Due  Credit 247 


LECTURE  VIII. 

THE    SUNDAY-SCHOOL:      ITS    AUXILIARY 
TRAINING    AGENCIES. 

Threefold  Training  Work  in  Every  Sphere. — Enlistment,  In- 
struction, and  Drill. —  Pulpit,  School,  and  Gymnasia. — 
Gain  through  Practice  Methods. — Loss  through  their  Lack. 
— Ancient  and  Modern  Illustrations  of  this.  —  Juvenile 
Missionary  Societies. — Juvenile  Temperance  Societies. — 
Church  Guilds. — Young  Christian  Bands. — Young  Peo- 
ple's Society  of  Christian  Endeavor. — Gain  to  the  Workers 
the  Primary  Aim. — A  Pastor's  Place  in  such  Work. — Many 
Members,  but  One  Body 279 


LECTURE    IX. 

PREACHING   TO    CHILDREN:      ITS    IMPORTANCE 

AND    ITS    DIFFICULTIES. 

Threefold  Meaning  of  the  Term  "  Preaching." — Preaching  Pos- 
sible injhe  Sunday-school  Class. — Gain  to  Children  from 
Pulpit  Sermonizing.  —  Danger  of  their  Neglect  by  the 
Preacher. —  Impressibility  of  Children. —  The  Children's 
Crusade. — Separate  Services  for  Children. — Five-minute 
Sermons.  Antiquity  of  this  Plan. — Modern  Preachers  to 
Children. — Preaching  to  Children  not  an  Easy  Matter. — 
Its  Influence  on  the  Preacher. — Stimulus  to  Success  in  the 
Fact  of  the  Difficulties 309 


CONTENTS.  xiii 

LECTURE    X. 

PREACHING   TO    CHILDREN:      ITS    PRINCIPLES 
AND    ITS    METHODS. 

Hints  to  the  Children's  Preacher. — A  Fresh,  Strong  Thought 
Essential  in  Every  Sermon. — A  Child's  Capacity  for  Great 
Thinking. —  Need  of  an  Obviously  Fitting  Text. —  Of  a 
Well-defined  Outline  Plan. —  Of  Simplicity  of  Language. 
— Of  Clearness  of  Statement. — Of  Explicitness  of  Appli- 
cation.— How  to  Prepare  for  this  Work. —  How  to  Seat 
the  Hearers.  —  How  to  Secure  their  Co-work. —  How  to 
Guard  Against  Tiresomeness. —  Concluding  Thoughts. — 
Christianity  Unique  in  its  Exaltation  of  Childhood      .     .  347 

INDEXES. 

Bibliographical  Index 381 

Scriptural  Index 393 

Topical  Index 396 


LECTURE   I. 

THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL:    ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN  AND 
ITS  CHRISTIAN  ADOPTION. 


I. 

THE  SUNDA  Y- SCHOOL :    ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN  AND 
ITS  CHRISTIAN  ADOPTION 

Definition  of  a  Sunday-school. —  Rabbinical  Traditions  of  its  Prime- 
val Prominence. —  Old  Testament  Light  on  its  Pathway. —  Its 
Mentions  in  Ancient  History. —  Its  Prominence  in  the  Syna- 
gogue Plans. —  Its  Primal  Curriculum. —  Its  Essential  Methods 
of  Working. — Its  Fundamental  Importance  in  the  Jewish  Econ- 
omy.— Jesus  as  a  Scholar  in  the  Sunday-school. — As  a  Teacher 
there. —  His  Methods  of  Teaching. —  His  Command  to  Start 
Sunday-schools  Everywhere. — Apostolic  Sunday-school  Work. 
— Sunday-schools  as  the  Basis  of  the  Christian  Church. 

The  Sunday-school:  Its  Orighi,  Mission,  Methods, 
and  AuxiHaries ;  this  is  the  subject  of  a  series  of  lec- 
tures which  I  am  to  deliver  here  at  the  invitation  of  the 
honored  Faculty  of  Yale  Divinity  School.  And,  as  pre- 
liminary to  an  intelligent  discussion  of  the  theme,  it  is 
'important  to  arrive  at  a  definition  of  the  term  "  Sunday- 
school,"  as  that  term  is  to  be  understood  and  employed 
in  this  discussion. 

A  Sunday-school  is  an  agency  of  the  Church,  by  which  | 
the  Word  of  God  is  taught  interlocutorily,  or  catecheti- 
cally,  to  children  and  other  learners  clustered  in  groups 
or  classes  under  separate  teachers ;  all  these  groups  or 
classes  being  associated  under  a  common  head.  Herein 
the  Sunday-school  is  differentiated  from  the  catechismal 

3 


4  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

general  service,  from  the  expository  Bible  lecture,  from 
the  children's  meeting,  and  from  any  school  for  secular 
instruction  on  the  first  day  of  the  week.  Its  source  of 
authority  is  God's  Church ;  its  subject-matter  of  study 
is  the  Bible;  its  form  of  teaching  includes  a  free  use  of 
question  and  answer;  its  membership  includes  children; 
its  arrangement  is  by  groups  clustering  severally  around 
individual  teachers,  as  component  portions  of  a  unified 
whole.  Any  one  of  these  particulars  lacking,  a  school 
held  on  Sunday  fails  of  being  specifically  a  Sunday- 
school.  All  of  these  particulars  being  found,  a  gathering 
is  substantially  a  Sunday-school,  on  whatever  day  of  the 
week  it  assembles,  or  by  whatsoever  name  it  be  called. 

That  the  Sunday-school  in  its  essential  characteristics, 
as  thus  defined,  was  a  prominent  feature  in  the  economy 
of  the  Jewish  Church,  and  that  it  was  included  as  an 
integral  factor  of  the  Christian  Church  in  the  declared 
plans  of  the  divine  Founder  of  that  church,  would  seem 
to  be  evident  in  the  light  of  the  plain  facts  of  history — 
sacred  and  secular.  It  is  to  those  facts  that  I  invate  fresh 
attention  just  here. 

The  origin  of  the  Sunday-school,  or  of  this  catechetical 
Bible-school,  like  the  origin  of  the  synagogue,  is  not 
fixed  with  accuracy  in  Jewish  history.  Traditions  oi 
both  these  religious  agencies  run  far  back  of  the  trust- 
worthy records ;  but  even  these  traditions  have  a  certain 
value,  as  indicative  of  the  earlier  existence  of  the  insti- 
tutions about  which  they  are  found  already  clustering, 
(>vith  a  deeply  rooted  popular  confidence  in  their  verity,) 
when  the  institutions  themselves  have  their  first  distinct 
record.  Hence  the  multiplied  traditions  of  the  promi- 
nence and  the  power  of  the  synagogue  Bible-school  in 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  5 

the  earlier  ages  of  the  world's  story,  which  are  to  be 
found  recorded  in  the  Talmud  and  the  Targums,  are  of 
interest  as  giving  an  air  of  antiquity  to  that  agency  of 
instruction  when  first  it  appears  in  unmistakable  plainness 
as  an  established  historical  fact,  surrounded  by  many 
myths  and  legends  of  its  primeval  honor  and  usefulness. 

The  Rabbis  tell  us  that  Methuselah  was  a  teacher  of 
the  Mishna,  before  the  Flood  ;^  that,  after  the  Deluge, 
Shcm  and  Eber  had  a  House  of  Instruction  where  the 
Halacha  was  studied ;2  that  Abraham  was  a  student  of 
the  Torah  when  he  was  three  years  old,^  and  that  he 
was  afterward  under  the  teaching  of  Melchizedek  in  mat- 
ters concerning  the  priesthood;*  that  young  Jacob  as  a 
good  boy  did  go  to  the  Bible-school,  while  Esau  as  a  bad 
boy  did  not;^  that  Dinah  the  daughter  of  Jacob  came  to 
grief  through  playing  truant  from  the  Bible-school  while 
her  brothers  were  in  attendance  there  ;^  that  among  the 
pupils  of  Moses  in  his  great  Bible-school  were  his  father- 
in-law  Jethro  and  young  Joshua,  and  that  the  latter  was 
preferred  above  the  sons  of  Moses,  as  his  successor,  be- 
cause of  his  greater  zeal  and  fidelity  in  the  Bible-school 
exercises;^  that  the  victory  of  Deborah  and  Barak  re- 
opened the  schools  for  Bible  study,  which  had  been 
closed  by  the  Canaanites;^  that  Samuel  conducted  Bible- 
schools  which  were  continued  to  the  days  of  Elisha  and 

1  Yalqut  on  Gen.,  12  a.  See,  also,  Delitzsch -Weber's  Syst.  der  Altsynag. 
Pal'dst.  TheoL,  p.  34. 

"Targ.  Jon.  on  Gen.  22:  19;  24:  62.  Bereshith  Rabba,  eh.  84;  comp. 
ch.  56  and  ch.  63.  3  Bereshith  Rabba,  ch.  95. 

*  Bereshith  Rabba,  ch.  43.    Yalqut  on  Gen.,  19  c.     5  Bereshith  Rabba,  ch.  63. 
6  Gen.  34 :  I  ff.  7  Qoheleth  Rabba,  93  a. 

8  Yalqut  on  Exod.,  76  a  ;  on  Josh.,  3  a.     Coinp.  also  Berakhoth,  63  b. 
'  Targ.  Jon.  on  Judg.  5 :  2. 


6  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

beyond ;  ^  that  wicked  King  Ahaz  had  the  Bible-schools 
for  children  closed  in  order  to  exterminate  the  religion 
of  Moses ;  that  good  King  Hezekiah,  on  the  other  hand, 
not  only  fostered  the  Bible-school  system,"  but  person- 
ally bore  his  own  children  to  receive  instruction  in  one 
of  these  schools;^  and  finally  that  the  prophecy  of  Hag- 
gai  concerning  the  greater  glory  of  the  second  temple^ 
had  reference  to  the  Bible  teaching  which  was  to  be 
carried  on  there,  and  which,  by  means  of  the  synagogues 
and  Bible-schools,  was  to  be  extended  near  and  far.^  All 
this  is  mere  fanciful  tradition,  it  is  true ;  but  even  as  tra- 
dition it  has  an  interest  through  what  it  shows  of  the 
estimation  in  which  the  Bible-school  was  held  by  the 
Rabbis,  at  the  time  of  the  recording  of  these  steadily  gath- 
ering traditions  concerning  its  ancient  place  and  power. 

In  the  line  of  gleams  of  light  from  the  Old  Testament 
text  on  this  pathway  of  rabbinical  tradition,  we  find,  in 
Genesis,^  a  reference  to  Abraham's  three  hundred  and 
eighteen  instructed''  retainers.    In  the  Chronicles,  we  see 

1  Targ.  Jon.  on  i  Sam.  19:  18  f. 

'2  Chron.  28:  24;  29:  3.  See  "Kd&Mx,  in  loco ;  also  ^loXiiox'?,  Philos.  d. 
Gesch.,  Part  I.,  p.  155. 

3  Berakhoth,  10  a,  b.     Menorath  Ha-maor,  iii.,  2,  2.  *  Hag.  2:  9. 

*  Comp.  Shir  Rabba  on  Cant.  7  :  12,  13  ;  Yalqut,  in  loco  ;  Erubin,  21  a. 
6  Gen.  14:  14. 

^  The  Hebrew  word  {chaneekh)  translated  in  our  English  Bible  "  trained," 
includes  in  its  meaning  the  idea  of  a  training  in  religion  as  well  as  in  a  use  of 
weapons ;  and  its  use  in  this  place  would  presuppose  a  process  of  school 
instruction  under  Abraham's  oversight.  (Comp.  Gesenius's  Thesaurus,  s.  v., 
with  citation  from  Kimchi ;  Fleischer,  in  Levy's  Neuhebr.  Lex.,i,.v.\  Well- 
hausen's  Skizz.  iind  Vorarb.,  Heft  3,  p.  154;  Dillmann's  Cotnm.  z.  Gen.,m. 
loco;  Buxtorf's  Lex.  Heb.  et  Chald.,  s.  v.;  Schaff-Lange's  Comm.,  in  loco, 
with  citation  from  Wordsworth  :  "  Abram  had  trained  them  in  spiritual  things 
in  the  service  of  God,  as  well  as  in  fidelity  to  himself;  see  chap.  18  :  19  ;  24: 
12-49.")     Junius  and  Tremellius,  in  the  Genevan  Bible  of  1630,  say  that 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  7 

that  when  Jehoshaphat  was  working  reforms  in  his  land, 
the  princes  and  the  priests  and  the  Levites  "  taught  in 
Judah,  having  the  book  of  the  law  of  the  Lord  with 
them ;  and  they  went  about  throughout  all  the  cities  of 
Judah,  and  taught  among  the  people."^  In  Nehemiah^ 
we  have  a  completer  exhibit  of  actual  methods  of  Bible 
instruction,  in  the  record  of  a  great  open-air  Bible-school 
in  Jerusalem,  after  the  return  of  the  Jews  from  captivity. 
Ezra  was  the  superintendent  in  this  school.  His  assist- 
ing teachers  are  mentioned  by  name.  The  opening 
prayer,  the  responsive  service,  and  the  details  of  class 
teaching,  are  all  described,  as  if  in  illustration  of  the  cus- 
tom in  such  a  gathering  then,  and  thenceforward,  in  the 
Holy  Land. 

Coming  down  to  a  time  when  we  have  contempo- 
raneous records  to  aid  us,  at  a  point  where  the  Bible 
narrative  is  lacking  in  fullness  of  detail,  we  find  Josephus 
claiming  that,  from  the  days  of  Moses,  it  was  a  custom 
of  the  Jews  to  assemble  in  their  synagogues  every  Sab- 
bath, not  only  to  hear  the  law,  but  "to  learn  it  accurately," 
and  that  so  thorough  is  this  instruction  of  the  young  in 
the  teachings  of  the  law,  that,  as  he  expresses  it,  "  if  any 
one  of  us  [Jews]  should  be  questioned  concerning  the 
laws,  he  would  more  easily  repeat  all  than  his  own  name."^ 
This  certainly  is  evidence  that  these  weekly  gatherings 

these  servants  of  Abram  were  "  instructed  concerning  the  right  of  this  expe- 
dition, and  concerning  religious  knowledge."  Payne  Smith  (Ellicott's  O.  T. 
Comm.,  at  Gen.  4:  17)  points  out  that  "  in  old  times  the  ideas  of  training  and 
dedication  were  closely  allied,  because  teaching  generally  took  the  form  of 
initiation  into  sacred  rites,  and  one  so  initiated  [or  trained]  was  regarded  as 
a  consecrated  person." 
1  2  Chron.  17:  7-9.  2  Xeh.  8:  1-8. 

3  Contra  Ap.,  ii.,  17,  18.     Comp.  i.,  12;  Aniiq.,  iv.,  8,  12. 


8  THE  SUNDA  Y- SCHO  OL  : 

for  Bible  study  were  not  a  very  new  thing  in  the  days  of 
Josephus.  We  find  Philo,  also,  who  even  antedates  Jose- 
phus,  affirming  that  the  synagogues  of  the  Jews  were 
really  "houses  of  instruction/'  and  that  with  the  help  of 
these  agencies  the  Jews  were,  "  by  their  parents,  tutors, 
and  teachers,"  instructed  in  the  knowledge  of  the  law 
"from  their  earliest  youth,"  so  that  "  they  bear  the  image 
of  the  law  in  their  souls."  ^  Moreover,  with  all  the  unhis- 
toric  character  of  the  Talmud  and  the  other  rabbinical 
writings,  there  are  given  in  them  many  items  of  informa- 
tion concerning  the  times  of  their  compiling,  and  the 
times  just  before,  which  are  not  to  be  passed  over  lightly 
in  an  investigation  like  this.  Competent  and  careful  schol- 
ars of  this  literature  have  brought  out  facts  which  justify 
the  statements  which  I  now  make  in  this  connection. 

According  to  the  Rabbis  it  was  about  80-70  B.  C.  that 
Simon  ben  Shetach,  as  president  of  the  Sanhedrin,  estab- 
lished—  or,  as  some  would  claim,  he  re-established — a 
system  of  religious  schools  in  conjunction  with  the  local 
synagogues  throughout  Palestine,  making  attendance  at 
them  obligatoiy.^  Whatever  question  there  maybe  as  to 
the  personality  of  this  Simon  ben  Shetach,  there  would 
seem  to  be  good  reason  for  believing  that  this  special 
work  which  is  ascribed  to  him  was  wrought  by  some 
person  or  persons  as  early  as  the  date  to  which  he  is 
assigned.  "  Eighty  years  before  Christ,"  says  Deutsch, 
"  schools  flourished  throughout  the  length  and  breadth 

1  Vita  Mosis,  i.,  27  (Mang.  II.,  168).  Legal,  ad  Caiwn,  ?g  16,  31  (Mang. 
II..  562,  577). 

2  Jerus.  Kethuboth,  viii.,  11.  Ginsburg,  art.  "Education,"  in  Alexander- 
Kitto's  Cyc.  of  Bib.  Lit.  Schtirer's  Hist,  of  the  Jewish  People,  Div.  II., 
Vol.  II.,  g  27,  p.  49.     Hamburger's  Real-Encyc,  II.,  672  (note  i),  1102. 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  9 

of  the  land; — education  had  been  made  compulsory;"^ 
and  this  statement  represents  the  modern  view  of  Jew- 
ish scholars  generally.  Additional  honor  in  this  line  is 
again  ascribed  by  the  Rabbis  to  Joshua  ben  Gamla  (that 
is,  Jesus  the  son  of  Gamaliel),  who  was  high-priest  about 
63-65  A.  D.,  and  of  whom  Josephus  makes  frequent  men- 
tion. He  is  said  to  have  "enacted  that  teachers  should 
be  appointed  in  every  province  and  in  every  town,  and 
[that]  children  of  six  or  seven  years  old  [should  be] 
brought  to  them."^  This  is  believed  by  many  to  have 
been  a  re-enacting  of  laws  of  an  earlier  date,  which  had 
fallen  into  neglect  in  the  progress  of  time.  Certain  it  is 
that,  at  the  latest,  in  the  second  century  after  Christ,  the 
records  of  the  Mishna  assume  the  existence  of  elementary 
religious  schools  in  connection  with  the  synagogues  ;  not 
as  recently  established,  but  as  a  well-known  institution.^ 

Thus,  from  the  evidence  of  Philo  and  of  Josephus,  and 
from  the  incidental  proofs  furnished  in  the  assumed  state 
of  things  according  to  the  earliest  records  of  the  Tal- 
mud, we  have  every  reason  to  believe,  and  none  to  doubt, 
that  a  system  of  Bible -schools  in  connection  with  the 
synagogues  of  Palestine  was  a  recognized  feature  of  the 
Jewish  economy  at  the  beginning  of  the  Christian  era. 
Describing  the  influences  which  were  about  a  Jewish 
child  at  this  period,  Edersheim  says :  "  There  can  be 
no  reasonable  doubt  that  at  that  time  such  schools 
existed  throughout  the  land."  ^     Schiirer,  who  is  little 

1  Literary  Remains,  p.  23.  Comp.  Jost's  Allg.  Gesch.  d.  Israel.  Volk.,  Vol. 
II.,  p.  13,  note. 

2  Schiirer's  Hist.,  Div.  II.,  Vol.  II.,  §  27,  p.  49;   also  Vol.  I.,  ^  23,  p.  201. 

^  [bid..  Vol.  II.,  §  27,  p.  49. 
*  Life  and  Times  of  Jesus  /he  Messiah,  I.,  230.     Comp.  Sketches  of  Jewish 
Social  Life,  p.  118. 


lO  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

inclined  to  give  weight  to  mere  tradition,  or  to  accept 
any  point  which  will  bear  challenging,  says  that  while 
the  education  of  Jewish  children  in  the  teachings  of  the 
law  "was,  in  the  first  place,  the  duty  and  task  of  parents, 
it  appears  that,  even  in  the  age  of  Christ,  care  was  taken 
for  the  instruction  of  youth  by  the  erection  of  schools  on 
the  part  of  the  community."^ 

Ginsburg  finds  added  proof  of  the  growth  in  promi- 
nence and  favor  of  these  elementary  Bible-schools  at 
an  earlier  date  than  our  era,  in  their  impress  upon  the 
Hebrew  language  of  the  times.  "  So  popular  did  these 
schools  [which  are  ascribed  to  Simon  ben  Shetach] 
become,"  he  says,  "  that  whilst  in  the  pre-exile  period 


1  Hist.,  Div.  II.,  Vol.  II.,  g  27,  pp.  48-50.  Reuss  {Geschichte  der  Heiligeti 
Schriften  Alten  Test.,  p.  677)  says  of  the  Pharisees  in  the  days  of  Christ: 
"  The  most  powerful  lever  of  their  activity  was  the  school."  Geikie  {Life  and 
Words  of  Christ,  I.,  172)  says:  "  It  cannot  be  doubted  that  boys'  schools 
were  already  general  in  the  time  of  Christ."  Merrill  {Galilee  171  the  Time  of 
Christ,  p.  91)  in  combating  the  claim  that  there  was  at  that  time  in  Palestine 
any  system  of  popular  education,  in  our  modern  understanding  of  the  term 
"  ediication,"  says  :  "  The  only  schools  were  fhose  connected  with  the  syna- 
gogues. The  only  school-book  was  the  Hebrew  Scriptures.  A  synagogue 
presupposed  a  school,  just  as  in  our  country  a  church  presupposes  a  Sunday- 
school.  Church  and  district-school  [the  New  England  term  for  a  neighborhood 
public  school]  is  not  a  parallel  to  the  Jewish  system  of  things,  but  church  and 
Sunday-school  is."  While  these  pages  are  being  put  in  type,  I  see,  for  the 
first  time,  Stapfer's  Palestine  in  the  Time  of  Christ,  in  which  again  the  sug- 
gestion is  made  of  a  likeness  of  the  ancient  Jewish  schools  to  the  modern 
Sunday-schools.  "  What  means  of  instruction,"  he  asks  (p.  142),  "  were  there 
at  Nazareth  between  the  years  4  B.  C.  and  10  A.  D.,  that  is  to  say,  in  the  time 
of  the  Lord's  boyhood?  Was  there  already  a  free  school,  or  class  for  the 
townspeople's  children,  taught  by  the  chazzan  ?  This  seems  to  us  extremely 
likely,  though  we  have  no  positive  proof.  Perhaps  on  the  Sabbath  day  there 
was  a  catechising,  or  what  we  should  now  call  a  Sunday-school."  These  re- 
peated references,  by  writers  from  widely  different  standpoints,  to  this  corres- 
pondence of  the  synagogue  schools  with  the  Sunday-school,  give  proof  that  the 
idea  is  in  no  sense  a  forced  one  from  the  mind  of  a  Sunday-school  specialist. 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  II 

the  very  name  of  schools  did  not  exist,  we  now  find  in  a 
very  short  time  no  less  than  eleven  different  expressions 
for  'school.'"^  These  expressions  include  such  mean- 
ings as  "  house  of  instruction,"  "  house  of  learning," 
"  house  of  the  book,"  "  house  of  the  teacher,"  "  house 
of  the  master,"  "  the  seat"  (where  the  disciples  sat  at  the 
feet  of  the  master,  or  teacher),  "  an  array  "  (where  the 
disciples  were  arranged  according  to  their  seniority  and 
acquirements),  and  "the  vineyard"  (the  place  of  refresh- 
ing and  of  fruitfulness). 

That  the  elementary  schools  of  this  Jewish  system  of 
public  education  were  Bible-schools,  corresponding  quite 
closely  in  their  essential  features  with  our  modern  Sunday- 
schools,  is  a  demonstrable  fact.  Indeed,  the  chief  value  of 
the  sjmagogues  themselves,  in  the  estimation  of  the  Jews, 
was  as  a  means  of  promoting  the  study  and  teaching  of 
the  law.  "The  main  object  of  these  Sabbath-day  assem- 
blages in  the  synagogue,"  says  Schiirer,  "  was  not  public 
worship  in  its  stricter  sense ;  that  is,  not  devotion,  but 
religious  instruction,  and  this  for  an  Israelite  was,  above 
all,  instruction  in  the  law.'"^  And  of  the  schools  connected 
with  the  synagogues,  Schiirer  says:  "The  subject  of 
instruction  .  .  .  was  as  good  as  exclusively  the  law ;  for 
only  its  inculcation  in  the  youthful  mind,  and  not  the 
means  of  general  education,  was  the  aim  of  all  this  zeal 

1  Cyc.  of  Bib.  Lit.,  art.  "  Education."  Comp.  Deutsch's  Literary  Re- 
mains, p.  23  f. 

2  LTist.,  Div.  II.,  Vol.  II.,  §  27,  p.  54.  As  illustrative  of  a  common  error  at 
this  point,  Cohen  (cited  by  Geikie,  in  Life  and  Words  of  Christ,  I.,  566,  Notes) 
claims  that  while  there  might  have  been  schools  in  Jerusalem,  there  could  not 
have  been  any  syiiagognes  there,  "  since  public  worship  could  be  held  there, 
nowhere  but  in  the  Temple."  In  fact,  the  synagogues  were  nowhere  places 
for  public  worship,  in  its  then  understood  sense,  while  the  Temple  yet  stood. 


12  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

for  the  instruction  of  youth.  And  indeed  the  earliest 
instruction  was  in  the  reading  and  inculcation  of  the  text 
of  Scripture.'"^ 

From  five  to  ten  years  of  age,  the  Jewish  child  was  to 
study  in  these  schools  the  Bible  text  only.^  It  was  not 
until  after  a  five  years'  course  in  the  plain  teachings  of 
the  Bible  itself,  that  he  was  to  venture  into  the  bewil- 
dering maze  of  what  corresponded  with  our  modern 
catechisms  and  commentaries  and  lesson-helps  generally; 
a  custom  which  is  not  without  its  valuable  suggestion  for 
religious  teachers  of  children  in  our  day.  And  it  is  a 
noteworthy  fact  that  the  Jewish  child's  first  Bible-school 
lessons  were  in  Leviticus,^  rather  than  in  Genesis  or 
Exodus.  An  arrangement  of  that  sort  would  provoke 
no  little  adverse  comment,  if  it  were  proposed  by  an 
International  Lesson  Committee  of  to-day ;  all  of  which 
goes  to  show  that  it  is  not  an  easy  matter  to  satisfy  every- 
body in  the  arranging  of  a  Sunday-school  curriculum. 
From  ten  to  fifteen  years  of  age,  the  Jewish  child's  school 
studies  were  in  the  substance  of  the  Mishna,  or  the  yet 
unwritten  Mosaic  traditions,  with  their  rabbinical  com- 
mentaries, while  still  he  included  the  Bible  text  in  his 
studies.  After  that  age,  the  youth  was  privileged  to  share 
in  those  endless  discussions  of  the  Rabbis  over  the  details 
of  the  Mishna  teaching,  which  later  made  up  the  Gemara, 
or  the  "  completion  "  of  rabbinical  exegesis  and  eisegesis.* 

1  Hist.,  Div.  II.,  Vol.  II.,  ?  27,  p.  so. 

^  Buxlorf's  Synag.  Jud.,  p.  140  f.  Taylor's  Sayings  of  the  Jnuish  Fathers, 
p.  III.  Comp.  Ginsburg,  in  Cyc.  of  Bib.  Lit.,  art.  "  Education  ;  "  Edersheim's 
Life  and  Times,  I.,  232;  Hamburger's  Real-Encyc,  I.,  340;  and  Strack,  in 
Herzog's  Real-Encyc,  IX.,  389.  *  Wayyiqra  Rabba,  ch.  7. 

*  See  proofs  of  all  this  in  Hamburger,  Herzog,  Edersheim,  and  Ginsburg, 
as  above.     See,  also.  Van  Gelder's  Die  l-^olkssch.  d.  J'l'/d.  Alterth.,  p.  10  f. 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  I  3 

Care  was  taken  that  the  text-books  and  lesson-helps 
in  these  Bible-schools  were  ample  and  trustworthy.^  A 
library  was  attached  to  e\ery  school-house,^  where  copies 
of  the  Holy  Scripture  were  kept  available.  Although  it 
was  deemed  unlawful  to  make  copies  of  small  portions 
of  any  of  the  books  of  Scripture,  an  "  exception  was  made 
of  certain  sections  which  were  copied  for  the  instruction  of 
children."  ^  These  selections  included  the  historic  record 
from  the  Creation  to  the  Flood;  the  first  nine  chapters 
of  Leviticus,  and  the  first  ten  chapters  of  Numbers;* 
together  with  the  Shema,*  which,  strictly  speaking,  was 
Deuteronomy  6:  4-9,  but  which  frequently  embraced 
also  Deuteronomy  11:  13-21  and  Numbers  15:  37-41, 
and  the  Hallel  (Psalms  113-118,  136).^  This  seems  to 
have  been  the  origin  of  the  Sunday-school  lesson-leaf, 
with  its  "  fragmentary,"  or  "  scrappy,"  portions  of  the 
Bible,  which  is  now  vexing  so  many  pious  minds  as  a 
dangerous  modern  innovation.  It  was  first  authorized 
by  the  Sanhedrin  Uniform  Lesson  Committee,  two  thou- 
sand years  or  so  ago.  Attention  was  also  given  to  the 
fitness  .of  the  instruction  from  these  lesson-leaves  ;  "  that 
the  lessons  taught  .  .  .  should  be  in  harmony  with  the 
capacities  and  inclinations  of  the  children ;  practical,  few 
at  a  time,  but  weighty."  ^ 

The  location   and   surroundings  of  the  Bible-schools 

1  Pesachim,  112  «■. 
'  Jerus.  Megilla,  iii.,  i.     Edersheim's  Life  and  Times,  I.,  233. 
2  Edersheim,  as  above. 
*  Jems.  Megilla,  as  above.    See,  also,  Sopherim,  v.,  i,  p.  25^;  Gittin,  do  a; 
cited  by  Edersheim,  as  above.    Comp.  Ginsburg,  in  The  Bible  Educator,  I.,  47. 
^  See  Schiirer's  Hist.,  Div.  II.,  Vol.  II.,  \  27,  pp.  'jj ,  84  f. 
6  Farrar's  Life  ajid  Work  of  St.  Paul,  I.,  43. 
■f  Ginsburg,  in   Cyc.  of  Bib.  Lit.,  art.  "  Education."     See,  also,  Berakhoth, 
631/;  Qiddushin,  82 /',•  Wayyiqra  Rabba,  ch..3. 


14  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

were  deemed  not  unimportant.  Ordinarily  they  were  in 
the  synagogue  building,  or  in  a  building  attached  to  it ;  ^ 
but  in  any  event  they  must  not  be  in  a  too  crowded 
quarter,  nor  near  an  insecure  crossing-place  of  a  river.^ 
School  hours  were  limited,  and  they  were  variously  pro- 
portioned according  to  different  seasons  of  the  year.^ 
Neither  health  nor  safety  for  the  scholars  might  be  dis- 
regarded with  impunity.  One  teacher  must  be  secured 
for  every  twenty  to  twenty-five  children  on  an  average, 
within  the  particular  school  limits.'* 

In  addition  to  these  elementary  Bible-schools,  which 

1  See  Vitringa,  De  Synag.  Vet.,  pp.  133-135  ;  also  Hamburger's  Real-Encyc, 
II.,  I103.  "^  Pesachim,  112  a.     Baba  Bathra,  21  a. 

5  Edersheim's  Life  and  Times,  I.,  232. 

*  See  Marcus's  Paedag.  d.  Israel.  Volk.,  II.,  48.  Maimonides  {Yad  Ha- 
chazaqa,  I.,  2)  summarizes  the  rabbinical  requirements  on  the  school  question, 
as  follows:  "  i.  Teachers  of  children  must  be  appointed  in  every  province, 
every  district,  and  every  city.  The  inhabitants  of  a  city,  in  which  the  children 
are  not  sent  to  a  teacher,  are  to  be  interdicted  until  they  engage  a  teacher  ; 
and  if  they  persist  in  their  refusal,  the  city  itself  is  to  be  put  under  the  inter- 
dict ;  for  the  world  exists  only  by  the  breath  from  the  lips  of  school  children. 
2.  The  child  has  to  be  sent  to  school,  according  to  its  physical  strength  and 
constitution,  at  its  sixth  or  seventh  year,  but  not  under  six  years  of  age.  .  .  , 
The  teacher  must  instruct  them  all  day  and  a  part  of  the  night,  to  accustom 
them  to  learn  day  and  night.  No  vacations  are  granted  to  the  children,  except 
the  afternoon  preceding  the  Sabbath,  or  the  Holiday,  and  the  holidays  them- 
selves. On  the  Sabbath  nothing  new  must  be  learned,  but  rehearsing  is 
permitted.  Not  even  spare  hours  shall  be  given  them  to  assist  in  the  building 
of  the  holy  temple.  3.  A  teacher,  who  goes  out  and  leaves  the  children  by 
themselves,  or  who  stays  with  them  and  does  some  other  work,  or  is  lazy  in 
his  teaching,  is  included  in  the  curse  pronounced  over  him  '  that  does  the 
work  of  the  Lord  negligently  '  (Jer.  48  :  10) ;  therefore,  only  a  God-fearing 
and  conscientious  man  is  to  be  engaged  as  teacher.  4.  Neither  an  unmarried 
man  shall  be  teacher  (on  account  of  the  visits  of  the  mothers  of  the  children), 
nor  womeQ  (on  account  of  the  fathers,  etc.).  5.  There  must  be  one  teacher 
for  every  twenty-five  children.  For  a  number  of  above  forty  an  assistant  is 
necessary;  and  for  a  yet  greater  number,  two  assistants.  6.  It  is  allowable  to 
send  a  child  to  another  teacher,  if  the  latter's  care  and  zeal  justify  it ;  but  only 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  1 5 

were  provided  for  in  every  community,  there  were  more 
advanced  Bible-schools  in  connection  with  every  local 
synagogue;^  as  also,  in  some  cases,  in  the  houses  of  the 
Rabbis.^  It  was  in  these  synagogue  Bible-schools  that 
the  Jewish  religious  training  agency  found  its  more  pecu- 
liar likeness  to  our  best  modern  church  Sunday-schools. 
The  outside  Bible-schools  were  as  the  primary  depart- 
ment, and  the  synagogue  Bible-schools  as  the  main 
department  of  the  religious  school  system.  The  regular 
Sabbath  services  of  the  synagogue  included  a  forenoon 
service  of  worship  and  an  afternoon  service  of  interlocu- 
tory Bible-study  for  young  and  old  together,  with  an 
intermission  between  for  dinner;  apian  quite  similar  to 
that  which  prevails  in  many  of  our  best  organized  city 
churches  to-day.^  The  forenoon  service  was  known  as 
the  Beth-ha-Sepher,  the  House  of  the  Book ;  and  the 
afternoon  service  as  the  Beth-ha-Midrash,  the  House  of 
the  Searching,  or  Study.*  The  study-room  was  ordi- 
narily the  upper  room  ^  (not  the  basement  room,  as  in 
some  of  our  modern  churches) ;  and  the  school  service 
held  there  was  not  infrequently  spoken  of  as  "  the  syna- 

when  teacher  and  child  hve  in  the  same  place  and  no  river  divides  between  their 
houses.  Under  no  consideration  can  a  child  be  brought  into  another  city,  or 
over  a  river  (even  in  the  same  city)  except  the  river  be  safely  bridged  over." 

1  Jerus.  Kethuboth,  .xiii.,  i.  Lightfoot's  Horae  Hebraicae,  I.,  78.  See,  also, 
Vitringa,  De  Synag.  Vet.,  p.  133  ff.,  and  Schurer's  Hist.,  Div.  II.,  Vol.  I.,  ^  25, 
p.  325;  Vol.  II.,  I  27,^.  53. 

2  Lightfoot's  Hor.  Hcb.,  IV.,  15  ;  also  Hausrath's  Hist,  of  N.  T.  Times,  I.,  90. 

3  Lightfoot's  Hor.  Heb.,  II.,  96;  IV.,  123. 

*  Jerus.  Kethuboth,  xiii.,  i  (the  latter  is  here  called  Beth-Talmud).  Light- 
foot's Hor.  Heb.,  I.,  78.     See,  also,  Megilla,  28  b,  cited  in  Hor.  Heb.,  IV.,  280. 

s  Jerus.  Shabbath,  i.,  2.  Lightfoot's  Hor.  Heb.,  II.,  96;  IV.,  14  f.  Comp. 
Succa,  45  a. 


1 6  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

gogue,"  ^  inasmuch  as  it  was  a  proper  department  of  the 
synagogue. 

So  important  was  the  Bible-studying  service,  in  the 
^estimation  of  the  Rabbis,  that  the  saying  arose:  "The 
righteous  go  from  the  synagogue  to  the  school ; "  ^  or,  as 
we  might  have  it  in  modern  parlance:  "  The  good  man 
goes  from  the  church  to  the  Sunday-school."  It  was 
even  suggested  that  this  is  the  idea  in  Psalm  84 :  7 : 
"  They  go  from  strength  to  strength  [from  one  source 
of  strength  to  another  source  of  strength;  and  so],  every 
one  of  them  appeareth  before  God  in  Zion."  He  who 
went  from  the  house  of  the  book  (the  house  of  reading 
or  the  house  of  prayer)  to  the  house  of  study,  was  said  to 
be  worthy  of  the  presence  of  the  Shekinah.^  And  the 
duty  of  bringing  the  children  from  the  one  service  to 
the  other  was  explicitly  enjoined  by  the  Rabbis.^  One 
of  the  services  was  not  enough  by  itself  (whichever  it 
was),  without  the  other  to  complement  it. 

The  sessions  of  the  elementary  Bible-schools  were  daily, 
except  on  the  Sabbath.^  The  sessions  of  the  synagogue 
Bible-schools,  like  the  synagogue  services,  were  on  Mon- 

"  Lightfoot's  Nor.  Heb.,  II.,  96.  Vitringa,  De  Synag.  Vet.,  p.  133  f.  Tay- 
lor's Sayings  of  the  Jewish  Fathers,  p.  65,  note  27.  Simon's  L'  Educ.  et  I'  Instr., 
p.  31.  Sepp's  Das  Lehen  Jesii  Christi,  I.,  173.  Hirsch's  Aiis  d.rabb.  SchiilL, 
p.  8.  That  the  custom  of  looking  upon  the  place  of  social  worship  and  the 
place  of  study  as  one  and  the  same  place  was  a  common  one  among  the 
Jews,  is  indicated  in  the  survival  of  the  term  "  school,"  in  designation  of 
the  synagogue  by  Portuguese  and  German  Jews.  The  same  term  is  similarly 
employed  in  Italy,  as  witnesses  the  designation  in  Leghorn  of  the  synagogue 
street,  as  Via  delta  Saiola. 

'  "  From  the  place  of  prayer  to  the  place  of  study."  Cited  in  the  Qabbal- 
istic  book  Zohar.  *  Midrash  Tehillim  on  Psa.  84 :  7. 

*  Baba  Bathra,  21  a.     Hamburger's  Real-Encyc,  II.,  1103. 

5  Comp.  Qiddushin,  30  a.    Ginsburg,  in  Cyc.  of  Bib.  Lit.,s.n.  "  Education." 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  1 7 

day  and  Thursday,  as  well  as  on  the  Sabbath,  in  order 
that  the  country  people,  when  they  came  into  town  to  do 
their  marketing,  might  have  the  privileges  of  religious 
instruction.^  For  the  same  reason,  sessions  of  these 
Bible-schools  were  also,  at  times,  held  in  some  open 
square,  or  by  the  wayside.^  Tri-weekly  services  of  the 
synagogues,  and  tri-weekly  sessions  of  the  accompanying 
schools,  have,  indeed,  been  continued  down  to  modern 
times  in  some  of  the  more  strict  and  orthodox  Jewish 
communities. 

Synagogues,  with  their  accompanying  Bible-schools, 
were  found  in  all  the  towns  and  villages  of  Palestine,  and 
in  many  Gentile  cities  beyond,  where  any  considerable 
number  of  Jews  had  their  temporary  home.^  In  some 
Palestinian  cities  these  training  agencies  were  multiplied. 
Thus,  for  example,  there  were  at  least  thirteen  synagogues 
and  schools  in  Tiberias;*  and  in  Jerusalem  there  were, 
according  to  one  authority,  four  hundred  and  sixty,  and 
according  to  another,  four  hundred  and  eighty.^  This 
would  give  a  larger  number  of  Sunday-schools  to  Jerusa- 
lem twenty  centuries  ago,  than  are  to  be  found  to-day  in 
Boston,  or  in  New  York,  or  in  Chicago.  But  the  Sunday- 
school  statistics  of  that  day  were  not  even  so  trustworthy 

1  Jerus.  Megilla,  iv.,  i;  comp.  i.,  1-3.  Schiirer's //ij^.,  Div.  II.,  Vol.  II., 
§  27,  p.  83.  See,  also,  Baba  Qamma,  82  a;  Lightfoot's  Hor.  Heb.,  II.,  93; 
Schiirer,  in  Riehm's  Handivorierbuck  des  Biblischen  Aliertums,  II.,  1594  b ; 
and  Jest's  Allg.  Gesch.  d.  Israel.  Volk.,  II.,  76. 

2  Edersheim's  Life  and  Times,  I.,  231. 

3  Acts  9:  2,  20;  13:  S,  14,  15,  43;  14:  I ;  15:  21 ;  17:  i,  17;  18:  4,  7,  8,  17, 
26;  22: 19;  24: 12;  26: II. 

*  Berakhoth,  30  (5.    Lightfoot's  Hor.  Heb.,  I.,  158. 
'Jems.    Kethuboth,   xiii.,  i.     Jerus,    Megilla,  iii.,    i.      Liglitfoot's    Hor, 
Heb.,  I.,  78. 

2 


1 8  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

as  those  of  the  present  time ;  and  it  is  probable  that  the 
numbers  here  given  are  to  be  taken  symbolically,  or 
gematrially/  rather  than  literally; ^although  Ginsburg^ 
deems  these  figures  not  "  at  all  exaggerated."  At  all 
events,  they  go  to  show  that  the  Sunday-school  agency 
was  at  that  time  not  an  insignificant  one  in  the  great 
Jewish  metropolis. 

In  the  ordinary  conduct  of  these  synagogue  Bible- 
schools,  at  a  later  period,  and  presumably  from  an  early 
date,  the  Rabbi  (or  the  superintendent,  as  we  should  call 
him)  occupied  a  seat  on  a  platform,  or  on  cushions,  which 
raised  him  above  the  level  of  the  school-room  floor.  His 
chaberini,  or  colleagues,  or  assisting  teachers  (assistant 
superintendents  as  they  were  in  some  cases),  were  seated 
a  little  lower  than  himself,  although  still  above  the  floor; 
frequently  in  a  semicircle  at  his  right  hand  and  his  left* 
The  pupils  were  seated  cross-legged,  in  Oriental  fashion, 
on  the  floor ;  literally  at  the  feet  of  their  teachers.^     In 

^  See  Farrar's  Early  Days  of  Chrhtianity,  Bk.  V.,  chap.  28,  §  5, 

2  Lightfoot's  Hor.  Heb.,  I.,  78. 

'  In  Cyc.  of  Bib.  Lit.,  art.  "Synagogue." 

*  See  Godwyn's  Moses  and  Aaron,  p.  30  f. 

*  Joses  ben  Joezer  said,  "  Let  your  house  be  a  meeting-house  for  the  wise; 

and  powder  thyself  in  the  dust  of  tlieir  feet,  and  drink  their  words  with  thirsti- 

ness  "  (Pirqe  Aboth,  i.,  4).     Vitringa  understands  this  as  meaning  that  the 

pupils  should  drop  themselves  on  the  ground  which  the  teachers  covered 

with  the  dust  of  their  feet  {De  Synag.  Vet.,  p.  168  f ).    It  is  claimed  that  before 

the  days  of  Gamaliel  the  pupils  stood  before  their  teachers  in  reverence  for 

the  law;   but  that  afterward  they  sat  (Gemara  Megilla,  21  a;   Vitringa,  p. 

166).     This  claim,  however,  is  shown  by  Vitringa,  and  by  Lightfoot  i^Hor. 

Heb.,  III.,  46-48),  to  be  not  justified  by  the  facts.     Comp.  Luke  10:  39;  Acts 

22:  3.     In  Sanhedrin,  5,  it  is  said,  "In  Bitter  there  were  three  teachers,  in 

Yabneh  four,  of  whom  one,  R.  Shimeon,  spoke  also  in  the  presence  of  the 

other  three,  but  seated  on  the  floor ; "   meaning  that  while  yet  a  pupil  he 

was  permitted  at  times  to  teach.     R.  Eliezer  (Megilla,  19)  said,  "  I  never 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  I9 

the  larger  schools  there  were,  in  addition  to  the  chaberim, 
or  colleagues,  assistants  known  as  anioraim,  or  speakers, 
or  repeaters  ;  corresponding  somewhat  to  monitors  in  the 
English  school  system.  The  truth  to  be  taught  by  these 
speakers  was  whispered  in  their  ears  by  the  Rabbi,  to  be 
spoken  out  by  them  in  a  loud  tone  of  voice.  And  here 
is  the  force  of  the  expression,  "  What  ye  hear  in  the  ear, 
proclaim  upon  the  housetops."  ^  In  the  more  primitive 
and  elementaiy  schools,  the  pupils  sat  on  the  ground  in 
a  semicircle,  facing  their  sitting  teacher.^ 

Although  the  traditional  law,  with  its  expositions  by 
the  fathers,  rather  than  the  simple  text  of  the  Bible,  was  the 
more  immediate  subject  of  study,  or  of  discussion,  in  the 
Beth-ha-Midrash,  the  Bible  text  was  supposed  to  be 
the  primary  basis  of  the  "  searching  "  here,  as  it  had  been 
the  exclusive  theme  of  study  in  the  elementary  schools 
which  preceded  this.  And  the  Beth-ha-Midrash  included 
the  young,  as  well  as  older  persons,  among  its  pupils.* 

passed  over  the  heads  of  the  holy  nation ;  "   that  is,  over  the  heads  of  the 
pupils  that  sit  on  the  floor  of  the  Beth-ha-Midrash.     See  note  on  this  subject 
in  Taylor's  Sayings  0/  the  Jetvish  Fathers,  p.  28  f. 
1  Matt.  10:  27. 

'  Maimonides  (cited  by  Vitringa,  p.  166)  says  that  "  the  teacher  sits  at  the 
head,  while  the  disciples  surrovmd  him  in  front,  like  a  wreath,  so  that  all  of 
them  can  see  the  teacher,  and  hear  his  words.  And  the  teacher  is  not  sitting 
on  a  seat  and  his  disciples  on  the  ground ;  but  either  all  sit  on  the  ground, 
or  all  sit  on  seats."  Comp.  Isa.  30:  20,  "Thine  eyes  shall  see  thy  teacher" 
(R.  v.,  marg.).  Again,  in  Shir  Rabba  (on  Cant.  6:  11,  1.  c),  referring  to  the 
pomegranates  in  the  vineyard,  it  is  said:  "  These  are  the  children  that  are 
seated,  and  occupy  themselves  with  the  Torah,  who  sit  in  rows  like  the  grains 
of  the  pomegranate."  For  a  description  of  the  Oriental  schools  of  to-day,  see 
Lane's  The  Modern  Egyptians,  Vol.  I.,  pp.  73-78  ;  Ebers's  Egypt,  II.,  64-71; 
Loftie's  A  Ride  in  Egypt,  pp.  182-194;  Jessup's  Syrian  Home  Life,  p.  48  f. 

3  Berakhoth,  17  a.  Lightfoot's  Hor.  Heb.,  II.,  95.  Comp.  gloss  in  Shabbath, 
IIS  'I.  cited  by  Lightfoot,  III.,  loi ;  and  Hamburger's  Real-Encyc,  II., 
676,  1104. 


20  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

In  addition  to  the  opening  and  closing  exercises  of 
worship  which  always  had  their  place  in  these  Bible- 
schools/  the  method  of  instruction  was  almost  entirely 
interlocutory  and  catechetical.  The  idea  of  attempting 
to  instruct  passive  hearers  by  the  teacher's  continuous 
discourse  does  not  seem  to  have  entered  the  acute  Jewish 
mind.  That  was  a  later  seduction  of  the  Adversary.  On 
this  point  the  evidence  is  overwhelming ;  and  it  is  impor- 
tant that  it  be  recognized  accordingly,  in  view  of  its 
practical  bearing  on  the  whole  system  of  Jewish  and 
Christian  Bible-school  teaching. 

Vitringa  says  :  "  It  was  the  teacher's  [part]  to  listen  ; 
and  the  pupil's  [part]  to  question;"^  not  the  teacher's 
part  to  lecture  and  the  scholar's  part  merely  to  hear. 
Again  Vitringa  says:  "The  mode  of  teaching  [that  is, 
one  of  the  modes  of  teaching]  was  this :  the  colleagues 
(wise  men  and  students)  raised  a  question  on  this  or  that 
subject,  while  the  teacher  answered  it  fully  through  an 
interpreter  [speaking  it  low  to  an  aviora,  who  would 
repeat  it  aloud  to  the  colleagues] ;  or  again  [as  another 
mode  of  teaching]  the  teacher  himself  began  the  discus- 
sion of  a  theme  raised  by  him."  ^  And  whether  it  was 
the  teacher,  or  a  colleague,  or  a  pupil,  who  began  the 
discussion,  it  was  by  the  pupil's  share  in  the  questioning 
that  the  pupil's  chief  gain  as  a  pupil  was  made.  In  Pirqe 
Aboth,  or  the  Sayings  of  the  Fathers,  a  tractate  of  the 
Mishna,  it  is  declared  that  in  order  to  make  the  Torah 
his  own  possession,  a  student  must  not  only  listen  to  it 
attentively,  but  must  have  a  part  in  its  discussion,  and 
must  ask  and  answer  questions  concerning  it,  and  must 

>  Berakhoth,  i6  b,  17  a.  *  De  Synag.  Vet,  p.  168.  ^  IhuL,  p.  157. 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  21 

repeat  over  what  he  has  heard.'  Lightfoot  cites  Maimon- 
ides  as  saying,  that  in  a  city  where  there  are  not  two  wise 
men,  one  capable  of  instructing,  and  the  other  competent 
to  hear,  and  to  ask  and  answer  questions,  there  cannot  be 
a  true  sanhedrin,  "  although  there  were  a  thousand  Israel- 
ites in  that  city."^  In  other  words,  there  can  be  no  school 
without  a  teacher,  and  no  teaching  without  questioning. 

Says  Ginsburg :  ^  "  The  mode  or  manner  in  which 
instruction  was  communicated  [in  these  Jewish  Bible- 
schools]  was  chiefly  catechetical.  After  the  master  [the 
teacher]  had  delivered  his  dicta  or  theme,  the  disciples 
[the  scholars]  in  turn  asked  different  questions,  which  he 
frequently  answered  by  parables  or  counter  questions.  .  .  . 
Sometimes  the  teacher  introduced  the  subject  by  simply 
asking  a  question  connected  with  the  theme  he  proposed 
to  propound  [as  his  lesson  for  the  day];  the  replies  given 
by  the  different  disciples  [or  scholars]  constituted  the  dis- 
cussion, which  the  master  at  last  terminated  by  declaring 
which  of  the  answers  was  the  most  appropriate.  Thus 
Rabbi  Jochanan  ben  Zakkai  ...  on  one  occasion  wanted 
to  inform  his  disciples  what  was  the  most  desirable  thing 
for  man  to  get.  He  then  asked  them,  'What  is  the  best 
thing  for  man  to  possess?'  One  replied,  *A  kind  na- 
ture;' another,  'A  good  companion;'  another,  'A  good 
neighbor ; '  another, '  The  power  to  foresee  consequences ; ' 
whilst  Rabbi  Eleazer  said,  'A  good  heart.'  Whereupon 
Rabbi  Jochanan  remarked,  *  I  prefer  Rabbi  Eleazer's  an- 
swer to  yours;  for  in  it  all  your  answers  are  compre- 
hended.'"*    "All  was  life,  movement,  debate,"  in  these 

1  Pirqe  Aboth,  vi.,  6.     Comp.  Taylor's  Sayings  of  the  Jewish  Fathers,  p. 
115  f.,  and  Marcus's  Paedag.,  II.,  42.  2  Ug,-  Heb.,  III.,  48. 

*  In  Cyc.  of  Bib.  Lit.,  art.  "  Education."  *  Pirqe  Aboth,  ii.,  9-12. 


22  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

Bible- schools,  says  Deutsch;^  "question  was  met  by 
counter-question,  answers  were  given  wrapped  up  in  alle- 
gories or  parables ;  the  inquirer  was  led  to  deduce  the 
questionable  point  for  himself  by  analogy." 

Many   indications    are    given   in  the    Talmud   of  the 
fundamental  importance  attached  to  this   interlocutory, 
or  catechetical,  method  of  Bible  teaching,  as  in  contrast 
with  passive  hearing.     Referring  to  the  words  in  Jere- 
miah 23:  29,  "Is  not  my  word  like  as  fire?  saith  the 
Lord,"  Rabbi  Ishmael  is  cited  as  saying :    "  As  the  fire 
does    not   continue  to  burn   on   one  piece   of  wood,  so 
also  the  words  of  the  Torah  cannot  prosper  with  him 
who  has  and  studies  them  for  himself"  ^ — all  by  himself. 
Again,  in  answer  to  the  question,  "  Why  is  the  Torah 
like  wood?" — or  a  tree  (as  declared  of  Wisdom  in  Prov- 
erbs 3:18,  "She  is  a  tree  of  life  to  them  that  lay  hold 
on  her"),  it  is  said,  from  Rabbi  Nachman  ben  Yitschaq: 
"As  a  small  piece  of  wood  [when  lighted]  kindles  the 
greater,  so  the  little  ones  among  the  disciples  of  the  wise 
kindle  the  greater  ones  and  sharpen  their  wits."^     And 
one  who  was  himself  a  superintending  Rabbi  testified: 
"  Much  I  have  learned  from  my  teachers  ;  more  from  my 
colleagues  ;  but  most  of  all  from  my  scholars."*    Again  it 
is  declared  by  a  Rabbi :    "  The  Torah  is  acquired  only  by 
companionship  "  (through  co-work  between  two).^    "  Be- 
rooriah,  the  celebrated  wife  of  Rabbi   Meir,  met  one  of 
her  husband's  pupils  who  studied  silently.    She,  watching 
him,  said,  '  That  which  is  designed  for  all  [the  members 
of  the  body]  must  be  secured  by  expression,  or  it  will 
not  be  secured  in  the  heart.' "^     Of  another  pupil  it  is 

1  Literary  Remains,  p.  24  f.  -  Taanith,  t  a.  '  Ibid. 

*  Ibid. ;  also  Makkoth,  10  a.  *  Berakhoth,  63  b.  ^  Erubin,  54  b. 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  23 

said  that,  not  studying  aloud,  he  forgot  in  three  years  all 
he  had  learned  in  the  school.^  And  Rabbi  Joshua  ben 
Levi  affirmed:  "  He  who  teaches  without  having  the 
lesson  repeated  [back  to  him]  aloud  is  like  one  who  sows 
and  does  not  reap."^ 

A  responsibility  was  recognized  as  resting  on  the 
Jewish  teacher,  not  only  to  try  to  teach,  but  to  teach. 
Until  he  had  actually  taught  his  scholar,  his  work  was 
practically  a  failure,  or  at  the  best  an  incompleted  purpose. 
Rabba  Raba  said:  "  If  a  lesson  is  not  understood  by  a  j 
pupil,  the.  trouble  is  not  so  much  with  the  pupil  as  with 
the  teacher,  who  fails  to  make  the  lesson  clear  to  that 
scholar."^  Here  is  a  recognition  of  the  fundamental 
truth  that  teaching  a  thing  is  not  merely  telling  that 
thing,  but  is  causing  another  to  know  that  thing.  It 
was  said  of  Rabba  Preda,  "  He  was  ready  to  repeat  his 
teaching  a  hundred  times  to  his  scholars,  if  that  were 
necessary  to  their  understanding  of  it."* 

Such  prominence,  indeed,  was  given  to  repetition,  or  to 
reviewing,  in  the  synagogue  Bible-schools,  that,  according 
to  one  rule,  "  On  a  Sabbath  only  things  previously  learned 
should  be  repeated,  nothing  new  being  introduced  at  such 
a  time."^  This  w^ould  seem  to  make  the  Sabbath  the 
review  season,  or  the  re-enforcement  season  for  the  entire 

1  Menorath  Ha-maor,  iv.,  i,  5. 
■•*  Sanhedrin,  99  a.  In  many  Jewish  schools,  as  in  Oriental  schools,  to-day, 
the  pupils,  while  studying,  rock  their  heads  and  bodies  backwards  and  for- 
wards, not  only  as  a  help  to  memory,  but  (as  it  is  claimed)  in  illustration 
of  the  spirit  of  David  when  he  said  (Psa.  35:  10),  "All  my  bones  shall  say. 
Lord,  who  is  like  unto  thee  ?  " 

3  Taanith,  8.  Hamburger's  Real-Encyc,  II.,  672.  Comp.  Qoheleth  Rabba 
on  Eccl.  10;  15.  *  Erubin,  54  b.     Hamburger,  ibid. 

5  Yore  Dea,  245  ;  cited  in  Hamburger's  Real-Encyc,  II.,  674. 


24  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

week's  Bible-study,  And  so  possessed  were  the  scholars 
supposed  to  be  with  a  living  interest  in  their  lessons  when 
they  came  to  the  Bible-school,  that  a  proverbial  caution 
of  the  Rabbis  was :  "  At  the  coming  in  of  the  teacher  the 
scholars  shall  not  overwhelm  him  with  questions;"^  or, 
as  we  should  express  it,  "  Don't  all  speak  at  once!" 

The  ability  and  readiness  to  ask  questions  fittingly,  as 
well  as  to  answer  them  correctly,  were  indeed  deemed 
an  indispensable  qualification  of  a  Jewish  teacher.  No 
power  of  continuous  discourse  on  his  part  was  a  substi- 
tute for  that.  Of  the  seven  talmudic  requisites  of  an 
educated  man,  five  of  them  bear  directly  on  this  point. 
He  will  not  be  in  haste  to  reply;  he  will  ask  only  fitting 
questions;  he  will  give  suitable  answers;  he  will  answer 
the  first  thing  first,  and  the  last  thing  last;  and  he  will  can- 
didly confess  the  limits  of  his  knowledge.^  It  is  even 
asserted  by  the  Rabbis  that  there  are  to  be  Bible-schools 
in  heaven;^  and  that  "just  as  questions  are  asked  and 
answered  in  the  schools  below,  so  questions  are  asked  and 
answered  in  the  schools  above;"*  which  is  only  another 
way  of  asserting  that  neither  on  earth  nor  in  heaven  can 
there  be  any  real  teaching  which  does  not  secure  real 
learning ;  that,  while  a  man  can  preach  whether  any  one 
heeds  him  or  not,  he  cannot  teach  unless  some  one  learns. 

"  Special  attention  was  given  to  the  culture  of  the 
memory,"  in  the  training  of  Jewish  children,  "  since  for- 

1  Shabbath,  3  a.  See,  also,  Tosephta  Sanhedrin,  ch.  iv. ;  cited  by  Marcus, 
Paedag.,  II.,  50. 

2  Pirqe  Aboth,  v.,  10.  See,  also,  Taylor's  Sayings  of  the  Jewish  Fathers,  p. 
100  f.,  with  note  giving  the  comments  of  R.  Obadiah  of  Sforno. 

3  Qoheleth  Rabba  on  Eccl.  8  :  10. 
*  Qabbalist  R.  Menahem  Reqanati,  in  Comm.  on  Exod.,  ch.  18. 


ITS  JFAVISH  ORIGIN.  25 

getfulness  might  prove  as  fatal  in  its  consequences  as 
ignorance  or  neglect  of  the  law."^  Even  where  words 
were  to  be  memorized  in  their  literalness,  the  Jewish 
scholar  was  not  left  to  study  by  himself,  nor  was  the 
teacher  contented  with  a  single  repetition  of  the  truth 
he  would  have  learned.  Iteration  and  reiteration  on  the 
teacher's  part,  and  responding  repetitions  on  the  part  of 
the  scholar,  were  insisted  on.^ 

An  illustration  of  the  approved  method  in  this  line  is 
given  in  the  talmudic  account  of  the  way  in  which  Moses 
conducted  his  school  for  the  original  teaching  of  the 
Torah  and  the  Mishna:^  "Moses  repaired  to  his  tent, 
followed  by  Aaron,  to  whom  he  communicated  the  re- 
ceived law  and  its  interpretation.  Aaron  then  rose  and 
removed  to  Moses'  right  side ;  whereupon  Aaron's  sons, 
Eleazar  and  Ithamar,  entered,  and  received  the  same  com- 
munication from  Moses,  after  which  they  took  their  seats 
respectively  on  either  side  of  Moses  and  Aaron.  Then 
the  seventy  elders  came,  and  Moses  taught  them  in  the 
same  way  as  he  had  taught  Aaron  and  his  sons.  Finally 
all  the  people  entered — or  every  one  who  had  a  desire 
for  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord — and  Moses  made  them 
also  acquainted  with  these  teachings  of  the  Lord.  In 
this  way  Aaron  had  heard  the  law  from  Moses'  lips  four 
times,  his  sons  three  times,  the  elders  twice,  and  the 
people  once.  Then  Moses  rose  from  among  them,  and 
Aaron  repeated  aloud  what  he  had   [now]  heard  four 

*  Pirqe  Aboth,  iii.,  12.  Chagiga,  9  a.  Qiddushin,  50  b.  See,  also,  Eders- 
heim's  Life  and  Times,  I.,  230. 

2  It  has  been  claimed,  indeed,  that  if  every  copy  of  the  Talmud  were 
destroyed,  "any  twelve  learned  Rabbis  would  be  able  to  restore  it  verbatim 
from  memory."  (Gfrorer's  Jahrh.  d.  Heils,  I.,  170;  cited  in  Edersheim's 
Sketches  of  Jewish  Social  Life,  p.  129,  note.)  '  Erubin,  54  b. 


26  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

times,  and  he  left  the  tent.  Then  Aaron's  sons,  who  had 
by  this  time  heard  the  law  four  times  (three  times  by 
Moses  and  once  by  their  father),  repeated  it  aloud  to  the 
audience,  and  they  left.  Thereupon  the  seventy  elders, 
who  also  by  this  time  had  heard  the  same  teachings  four 
times,  repeated  it  to  the  people.  The  people  now  had 
heard  it  four  times  also — once  from  Moses,  once  from 
Aaron,  once  from  Aaron's  sons,  and  finally  from  the 
elders.  Thus  instructed,  they  also  left  the  tent,  teaching 
each  other  what  [of  the  written  law]  they  had  learned,  and 
writing  it  down  [for  they,  also,  must  repeat  it  in  order 
to  make  it  their  own].  The  interpretation  [of  the  law 
as  distinct  from  the  written  law  itself]  they  imprinted  on 
their  minds,  and  delivered  it  orally  to  their  children  ;  and 
these  again  to  theirs."  And  thus  it  was  that  the  simplest 
form  of  teaching  by  means  of  memorizing  was  conducted 
among  the  Jews. 

It  was  not  that  these  catechetical  Bible-schools  were 
merely  incidental  to  the  Jewish  life  and  polity ;  they  were 
reckoned  a  very  part  of  the  religious  system  itself,  essen- 
tial to  the  stability  and  perpetuity  of  the  national  existence 
and  character.  Many  a  talmudic  proverbial  saying  might 
be  cited  in  illustration  of  this  truth.  Thus,  for  example  : 
"The  world  continues  to  exist,  only  by  the  breath  of  the 
children  of  the  schools."^     "The  children  must  not  be 

1  Shabbath,  fol.  119  b.  Geikie  (^The  Life  and  Words  of  Christ,  Vol.  I.,  p. 
565,  Notes)  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  Dukes  (in  Rabbinische  Blumenlese, 
104)  explains  this  as  referring  to  "  the  innocence  of  young  children,"  rather 
than  to  the  importance  of  their  education.  But,  even  with  that  meaning,  it  is 
clear  that  the  innocent  children  are,  by  this  talmudic  saying,  reckoned  as  sure 
to  be  in  the  schools  of  the  nation.  Moreover,  Maimonides  (cited  in  note  i, 
p.  14,  ante)  explicitly  applies  this  talmudic  saying  to  the  importance  of  the 
children's  education.  See,  also,  on  this  point,  Van  Gelder's  Die  Volkssch.  d. 
Jud.  Alterth.,  p.  3. 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  '  27 

detained  from  the  schools,  even  though  it  were  to  help 
rebuild  the  temple."^  "  The  true  guardians  of  the  city- 
are  tlie  teachers."^  "  If  you  would  destroy  the  Jews  you 
must  destroy  their  schools."^  "  He  who  learns  the  To  rah 
and  does  not  teach  it,  is  like  a  [fragrant]  myrtle  in  the 
desert,  where  there  is  no  one  to  enjoy  it."*  "  He  who 
teacheth  a  child  is  like  one  who  writeth  with  ink  on  clean 
paper;  but  he  who  teacheth  old  persons  is  like  one  who 
writeth  with  ink  on  blotted  paper."  ^  "  He  who  teaches 
the  Torah  to  the  child  of  his  fellow-man,  is  to  be  looked 
upon,  in  a  scriptural  point  of  view,  as  though  he  had 
begotten  him."  ^  "  He  who  refuses  a  pupil  one  lesson 
has,  as  it  were,  robbed  him  of  his  parental  inheritance."^ 
"  He  who  teaches  the  child  of  his  fellow-man  shall  occupy 
a  prominent  place  among  the  saints  above."*  This  last 
aphorism  would  seem  to  be  a  paraphrase  of  the  promise 
in  Daniel,^  which,  in  its  marginal  reading,  is  :  "  The  teach- 
ers shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the  firmament;  and 
they  that  turn  many  to  righteousness,  as  the  stars,  for- 
ever and  ever." 

A  Bath-Qol  (a  very  voice  of  God)  said  to  the  Jews : 
"  Dearer  to  me  is  the  breath  of  the  school-children,  than 
the  fragrance  of  the  sacrifices  on  the  smoking  altar."  ^^ 

1  Shabbath,  120.  2  Jerus.  Chagiga,  vii.,  7. 

3  Bereshith  Rabba,  ch.  65.     Hamburger's  Real-Encyc.  II.,  1102  f. 

*  Rosh  Ha-shana,  23  a.     Comp.  Buxtorfs  Syn.  Jud.,  p.  139. 

5  This  maxim,  which  has  come  to  be  the  common  property  of  Jewish  and 
Christian  educators  ahke,  would  seem  to  be  a  talmudic  rendering  of  the  words 
of  Saul  of  Tarsus,  the  pupil  of  Gamaliel.  It  is  given  in  Pirqe  Aboth  (iv.,  27) 
as  ascribed  to  Elisha  ben  Abooyah,  the  great  apostate,  who  is  called  in  the 
rabbinical  writings  acher,  that  is,  "the  other  one,"  after  Jesus  of  Nazareth, 
who  is  spoken  of  in  those  writings  as  otho  ha-eesh,  "  that  man." 

^  Sanhedrin,  19.  ^  Cheleq,  91.  8  Shabbath,  33.  »  Dan.  12:  3. 

^•'  Qoheleth  Rabba  on  Eccl.  9:  7.    Hamburger's  Real-Encyc,  II.,  1103. 


28  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

And  the  Rabbis,  commenting  on  the  words  in  the  psalm 
of  David,  "  Touch  not  my  anointed  ones,  and  do  my 
prophets  no  harm,"^  explained  that  the  Lord's  "anointed 
ones"  are  the  school-children,  and  his  "prophets"  are 
their  teachers.^  God  himself  is  even  represented  by  the 
Rabbis  as  teaching  little  children.  "  What  is  God  doing 
in  the  fourth  part  of  the  day  [the  last  quarter  of  the  day]  ?  " 
asks  R.  Acha.  And  the  answer  is  :  "  He  sits  and  teaches 
children  the  Torah,  as  it  is  said  in  Isaiah  28  :  9,  'Whom 
will  he  teach  knowledge?  and  whom  will  he  make  to 
understand  the  message?  them  that  are  weaned  from 
the  milk,  and  drawn  from  the  breasts.' "  ^  To  live  in  a 
community  where  there  was  no  Bible -school  was  for- 
bidden to  the  godly  Jew.*  "A  village  without  a  school 
for  children  ought  to  be  destroyed,"  said  a  talmudic 
authority;^  and  it  was  even  said,  after  the  destruction 
of  Jerusalem,  that  that  disaster  came  because  the  schools 
there — many  as  they  were — were  neglected.^ 

And  this  was  the  Bible-school  system  of  the  Jews  in 
Palestine,  at  the  time  that  Jesus  of  Nazareth  was  born 
into  that  land,  to  be  brought  up  there  as  a  Jew.  Bible 
teaching  was  to  begin  at  home.'^  At  from  five  to  seven 
years  of  age,  at  the  latest,  the  child  was  to  find  his  place 
in  the  church  Bible-school.^     He  was  there  to  memorize 

1  Psa.  105:  15;  I  Chron.  i6:  22. 

2  Kethuboth,  103.     Shabbath,  119.     See,  also,  Yalqut  on  Psa.  105  :  15. 

3  Yalqut  on  Isa.,  47  a.       *  Sanhedrin,  17  b.       5  Shabbath,  120.        ^  /^/(/. 

'  "  Passing  over  the  Old  Testament  period,  we  may  take  it  that,  in  the  days 
of  Christ,  home  teaching  ordinarily  began  when  the  child  was  about  three 
years  old  "  (Edersheim's  Sketches  0/ Jewish  Social  Life,  p.  129). 

8  Five  years  of  age  was  the  time  for  an  exceptionally  healthy  and  vigorous 
Jewish  child  to  begin  his  school  study  (Pirqe  Aboth,  v.,  24) ;  but  with  the 
average  child  six  years  of  age  was  counted  young  enough.     "  There  is  both 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  29 

the  words  of  Scripture,  and  he  was  at  the  same  time  to 
come  to  an  understanding  of  its  meaning  through  the 
process  of  familiar  questioning  and  answering.  Later, 
he  was  to  be  a  member  of  the  synagogue  Bible-school ; 
to  share  there  the  benefits  of  that  interlocutory  teach- 
ing which  was  the  only  process  which  the  Jews  deemed 
worthy  of  the  name  of  teaching.  So  far  the  facts  would 
seem  to  be  fairly  established. 

Referring  to  the  elementary  Bible-schools,  such  as  have 
been  here  outlined,  Edersheim  says  :  ^  "'We  do  not  even 
know  quite  certainly  whether  the  school-system  had,  at 
that  time,  extended  to  far-off  Nazareth;  nor  whether 
the  order  and  method  which  have  been  described  were 
universally  observed  at  that  time.  In  all  probability, 
however,  there  was  such  a  school  at  Nazareth ;  and,  if 
so,  the  Child-Saviour  would  conform  to  the  general  prac- 
tice of  attendance.  We  may  thus,  still  with  deepest 
reverence,  think  of  him  as  learning  his  earliest  earthly 
[Bible-school]  lesson  from  the  Book  of  Leviticus." 

In  the  one  glimpse  that  is  given  us  of  the  childhood  of 
our  Lord,^  he  is  seen  in  one  of  the  more  advanced  Bible- 
schools  of  his  day,  within  the  temple  limits,  at  the  age  of 
twelve  years,  having  a  part  in  its  ordinary  exercises,  in 
accordance  with  the  customs  of  that  time.  "  There  were 
occasions,"  says  Edersheim,^  "  on  which  the  temple  be- 
came virtually,  though  not  formally,  a  Beth-ha-Midrash. 


common  sense  and  sound  experience  in  this  talmudical  saying  (Kethuboth, 
50  [3]),  '  If  you  set  your  child  to  regular  study  before  it  is  six  years  old,  you 
shall  always  have  to  run  after,  and  yet  never  get  hold  of,  it.'  This  chiefly  has 
reference  to  the  irreparable  injury  to  health  caused  by  such  early  strain  upon 
the  mind  "  (Edersheim,  as  above,  p.  105). 

•  Life  atid  Times,  I.,  233.       *  Luke  2 :  42-47.       *  Life  and  Times,  I.,  247. 


30  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

For  we  read  in  the  Talmud  that  the  members  of  the 
temple  Sanhedrin,  who  on  ordinary  days  sat  as  a  court 
of  appeal,  from  the  close  of  the  morning  to  the  time  of  the 
evening  sacrifice,  were  wont  on  Sabbaths  and  feast-days 
to  come  out  upon  '  the  terrace '  of  the  temple,  and  there 
to  teach.  In  such  popular  instruction  the  utmost  latitude 
of  questioning  would  be  given.  It  is  in  this  audience, 
which  sat  on  the  ground,  surrounding  and  mingling  with 
the  doctors  [the  teachers]  .  .  .  that  we  must  seek  [at 
this  time]  the  child  Jesus." 

There  he  was,  as  the  evangelist  gives  the  record,  "  sit- 
ting in  the  midst  of  the  teachers,  both  hearing  them,  and 
asking  them  questions."  ^     It  was  not  that  his  presence 

1  Luke  2 :  46.  This  simple  incident  in  the  Bible  story  has  been  a  fruitful 
theme  of  discussion  among  commentators.  It  has  been  claimed  by  some  that 
the  child  Jesus  here  took  his  place  as  a  teacher  among  teachers,  or  at  least 
assumed  some  other  position  than  that  of  a  mere  learner  (comp.  Lightfoot's 
Hor.  Heb.,  III.,  48  ;  Bishop  Taylor's  Life  of  Christ,  p.  156  ;  Bengel's  Gno7non, 
in  loco  ;  Strauss's  Afew  Life  of  Jesus,  II.,  98  f. ;  De  Wette's  Handb.  z.  N.  T., 
in  loco;  Lange's  Life  of  Jesus,  I.,  322  f. ;  Ewald's  Hist,  of  Israel,  VI.,  187  f. ; 
Sepp's  Das  Leben  Jesu  Christi,  I.,  185  ;  Ellicott's  Life  of  Christ,  p.  95).  Others 
have  seen  in  the  narrative  only  the  record  of  a  young  learner's  method  in  a 
Jewish  Bible-school  (comp.  Origen's  Opera  Omnia,  Tom.  V.,  p.  158  ;  Wet- 
stein's  N.  T.  Graec,  in  loco;  Rosenmiiller's  Alte  u.  Neue  Morgeiiland,  VI., 
46;  Neander's  Z,//^  of  Jesus  Christ,  p.  30  f. ;  Olshausen's  Bib.  Comtn.,  in 
loco;  Meyer's  N.  T.  Comm.,  in  loco;  Alford's  Greek  Test.,  in  loco;  Stier's 
Words  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  I.,  19  ;  Van  Oosterzee  in  Schaff- Lange's  Bib.  Comm., 
in  loco  ;  Andrews's  Life  of  Our  Lord,  p.  102  ;  Keim's  Hist,  of  Jesus  of  Nazara, 
II.,  133 ;  Farrar's  Life  of  Christ,  I.,  74-77  ;  Geikie's  Life  and  Words  of  Christ, 
I.,  226-228  ;  Plumptre,  in  Ellicott's  New  Test.  Cotnm.  for  Eng.  Readers,  in 
loco).  In  e.xplanationof  the  supposed  contradiction  in  the  Holy  Child's  being 
only  a  learner,  while  yet  he  is  singled  out  as  in  some  way  in  the  midst  of  the 
teachers,  perhaps  no  more  satisfactory  suggestion  has  been  made  than  that 
which  Godet  proffers  ( Comtn.  on  Luke,  in  loco) :  "  The  expression  '  seated  in 
the  midst  of  the  doctors '  proves,  no  doubt,  that  the  child  was  for  the  time 
occupying  a  place  of  honor.  ,  ,  .  Jesus  had  given  some  remarkable  answer,  or 
put  some  original  question  ;  and,  as  is  the  case  when  a  particularly  intelligent 
pupil  presents  himself,  he  had  attracted,  for  a  moment,  all  the  interest  of  his 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  31 

there  wa.s  exceptional,  nor  yet  that  his  bearing  a  part  in 
the  ordinary  exercises  of  study  was  to  be  wondered  at. 
So  far  he  -was  simply  in  the  line  of  a  Jewish  youth's 
privileges  and  duty.^  But  that  which  zvas  remarkable  in 
the  case  of  the  Holy  Child  was  his  marvelous  knowledge 
in  the  realm  of  God's  Word,  as  compared  with  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  teachers  surrounding  him.  "All  that  heard 
him  were  amazed  at  his  understanding  and  his  answers."^ 
And  so  important  did  he  himself  deem  this  exercise,  that 
he  asked  his  anxious  mother  why  she  had  sought  him 
anywhere  else  than  just  there,  during  his  stay  in  the  holy 
city  as  a  child. 

teachers.  There  is  nothing  ill  the  narrative,  when  rightly  understood,  that 
savors  in  the  least  of  an  apotheosis  of  Jesus."  This  is  practically  the  view  of 
Weiss  {Life  of  Christ,  I.,  276)  and  of  Edersheim  {Life  and  Times,  I.,  247  f.). 

^  Josephus  (  V^ita,  ch.  2)  claims  to  have  been  often  called  on  by  the  high- 
priests  and  elders  to  give  his  opinion  on  points  of  the  law,  when  he  was  about 
fourteen  years  old.  This  is  commonly  spoken  of  as  a  proof  of  his  egotism  ; 
but  the  egotism  is  in  his  boasting  of  a  fact  which  was  by  no  means  unique,  as  he 
seems  to  have  counted  it.  See  a  reference  to  the  enkindling  power  of  young- 
sters among  Rabbis  at  p.  22,  ante.  The  Rabbis  had  a  saying  (Bammidbar  Rab- 
ba,  14)  that  "  the  word  of  God  out  of  the  mouth  of  a  youngster  is  to  be  received 
as  from  the  mouth  of  a  wise  man,  yea,  as  from  the  mouth  of  an  assembly  of 
wise  men,  yea,  as  from  the  very  Sanhedrin,  yea,  as_from  the  mouth  of  Moses, 
yea,  as  from  the  mouth  of  the  blessed  God  himself."  Even  in  modern  times 
a  bright  youngster  has  attracted  special  prominence  by  his  skill  in  question- 
answering.  Dr.  Rawley,  the  biographer  of  Lord  Bacon,  tells  of  the  promi- 
nence thus  accorded  to  his  hero.  "  Ravvley's  story  introduces  us  to  a  child 
of  singular  gravity  and  adroitness,  the  future  Chancellor  and  courtier.  The 
Queen  '  delighted  much  then  to  confer  with  him,  and  to  prove  him  with  ques- 
tions; unto  whom  he  delivered  himself  with  that  gravity  and  maturity  above 
his  years,  that  Her  Majesty  would  often  term  him  '  The  young  Lord  Keeper.' 
Being  asked  by  the  Queen  how  old  he  was,  he  answered  with  much  discretion, 
being  then  but  aboy,  that  he  was  two  years  younger  than  Her  Majesty's  happy 
reign,  with  which  answer  the  Queen  was  much  taken."  (William  Aldis 
Wright's  Preface  to  Bacon's  Advancement  of  Learniiig,  p.  vi.  f.). 

■-'  Luke  2 :  47. 


3 2  THE  SUNDA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

After  this,  when  our  Lord  had  entered  upon  his  public 
ministry,  he  is  spoken  of  again  and  again  as  tcacJiing  in 
the  synagogues,  as  distinct  from  his  preaching  there.  If, 
indeed,  we  were  wholly  unfamiliar  with  the  arrangement 
and  customs  of  the  Jewish  synagogues  in  that  day,  we 
might  be  at  a  loss  as  to  the  difference  between  these 
two  exercises  of  "teaching"  and  "preaching"  within  the 
limits  of  the  same  sacred  structure.  But  knowing  what 
we  do,  it  would  seem  fair  to  infer  that  our  Lord  bore  a 
part  in  the  morning  service  of  worship  and  preaching  in 
the  synagogue,  and  in  the  afternoon  service  of  worship 
and  teaching  in  the  same  synagogue;  in  other  words, 
that  he,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  godly  Jew,  went 
from  the  synagogue  to  the  Bible-school. 

The  evangelist  Matthew,  who  peculiarly  wrote  from  the 
Jewish  stand-point  said,  in  terms  which  all  Jews  would 
understand,  that  "  Jesus  went  about  in  all  Galilee,  teach- 
ing in' their  synagogues,  and  preaching  the  gospel  of  the 
kingdom;"^  teaching  by  that  form  of  instruction  which 
admitted  of  free  interlocutory  play  between  teacher  and 
taught,  and  preaching  by  the  distinct  heralding  of  a 
message  from  God.  And  again,  by  the  same  evangelist 
the  record  stands :  "  Jesus  went  about  all  the  cities  and 
the  villages,  teaching  in  their  synagogues,  and  preaching 
the  gospel  of  the  kingdom."^  Mark  and  Luke,  also, 
repeatedly  distinguish  between  the  "  preaching  "  and  the 
"  teaching  "  of  our  Lord.^  He  is,  moreover,  represented 
in  all  the  Gospels  as  pursuing  this  work  of  "teach- 
ing," wherever  he  might  be;    by  the  wayside,*  by  the 

1  Matt.  4  :  23.  *  Matt.  9  :  35  ;  also  11 :  i. 

3  Mark  1 :  14,  21,  22,  39 ;  Luke  20 :  i. 
*  Mark  6 :  6,  34 ;  iq  :  i ;  Luke  13  :  22  ;  John  4 :  1-42. 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  33 

sea/  in  the  private  house,^  or  in  the  temple  court,^  as  well 
as  in  the  synagogue/ — teaching  the  Jews  by  that  familiar 
interlocutory  and  inter-colloquial  method  with  which  the 
Jews  were  so  familiar. 

John  the  Baptist  is  always  represented  as  preaching,^ 
ne\'er  as  teaching.  Kven  when  he  gave  particular  instruc- 
tion in  the  line  of  personal  duty,  to  the  soldiers,  to  the 
publicans,  and  to  the  Jewish  people,  he  is  spoken  of  as  a 
preacher.^  But  Jesus  is  represented  as  a  teacher  of  truth, 
in  addition  to  his  mission  as  a  preacher  of  righteousness. 
Thus,  for  example,  when  he  was  at  Jerusalem  at  the  feast 
of  the  tabernacles,  it  is  recorded  of  him :  "  When  it 
was  now  the  midst  of  the  feast  Jesus  went  up  into  the 
temple,  and  taught  [sat  as  the  teacher  of  a  gathered  class 
of  pupils].  The  Jews  therefore  marveled,  saying.  How 
knoweth  this  man  letters,  having  never  learned?  [having 
never  been  the  pupil  of  a  well-known  Rabbi]. "^  No  such 
question  as  this  seems  to  have  been  asked  concerning 
John  the  Baptist ;  for  he  was  only  a  preacher.  It  was 
appropriate  concerning  Jesus,  because  he  now  occupied 
the  place  of  a  teacher,  questioning  his  pupils  and  answer- 
ing their  questions. 

We  cannot  suppose  that  all  of  the  questions  asked  of 
or  by  our  Lord,  in  the  progress  of  his  manifold  teaching, 
are  recorded  in  the  Gospel  narratives  preserved  to  us.     If 

1  Mark  2  :  13  ;  4  :  i,  2. 

*  Matt.  13  :  36  ;  17  :  25  ;  Mark  9  :  33-50  ;  Luke  7  :  36-50  ;  10  :  38-42  ;  19  :  5-27. 

3  Matt.  21  :  23  to  22  :  46  ;  Mark  12  :  35  ;   14  :  49  ;   Luke  19  :  47  ;  21  :  37  ;  John 
7  :  14,  28  ;  8:2,  20. 

*  Matt.  13:  54;  ^Lark  6:2;  Luke  4:  15,  31-33  ;  6:6;   13:  10;  John  6:  59; 
18  :  20. 

5  Matt.  3  :  I-I2  ;  Mark  1:1-8;  Luke  3  :  1-9. 
6  Luke  3  :  10-18,  '   John  7  :  14,  15. 

3 


34  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

that  had  been  attempted,  "  I  suppose  that  even  the  world 
itself  would  not  contain  the  books."  ^  But  there  is  no 
lack  of  evidence  that  questioning  and  counter-questioning 
entered  freely  into  his  ordinary  teaching  processes. 

Observe,  for  example,  the  record  of  our  Lord's  latest 
exercises  of  teaching  in  the  temple  court,  as  it  is  found  in 
Matthew's  Gospel.^  "When  he  was  come  into  the  temple, 
the  chief  priests  and  the  elders  of  the  people  came  unto 
him  as  he  was  teaching,  and  said,  [taking  their  part  in 
the  exercise  by  this  question,]  By  what  authority  doest 
thou  these  things  ?  and  who  gave  thee  this  authority  ? 
And  Jesus  answered  and  said  unto  them,  [in  accordance 
with  a  very  common  method  of  response  in  Jewish  Bible- 
school  teaching,]  I  also  will  ask  you  one  [counter]  ques- 
tion, which  if  ye  tell  me,  I  likewise  will  tell  you  by 
what  authority  I  do  these  things.  The  baptism  of  John, 
whence  was  it  ?  from  heaven  or  from  men  ?  And  [at 
that  question]  they  [the  questioning  priests  and  elders] 
reasoned  with  themselves,  saying,  If  we  shall  say.  From 
heaven;  he  will  say  unto  us,  Why  then  did  ye  not  believe 
him  ?  But  if  we  shall  say.  From  men ;  we  fear  the  mul- 
titude ;  for  all  hold  John  as  a  prophet.  And  they  answered 
Jesus,  and  said.  We  know  not.  He  also  [then]  said 
unto  them.  Neither  tell  I  you  by  what  authority  I  do 
these  things." 

But  our  Lord's  questionings  were  not  merely,  as  might 
seem  from  this  illustration  so  far,  for  the  purpose  of 
avoiding  a  profitless  discussion  with  his  enemies.  On 
this  occasion,  he  immediately  followed  up  his  silenced 
opposers  with  the  parable  of  the  two  sons  directed  to 

*  John  21  :  25.  2  Matt.  21  :  23  to  23  :  39. 


ITS  JEWISH  ORIGIN.  35 

work   in  their  father's  vineyard ;    prefacing  it  with  the 
rhetorical  question,  "  But  what  think  ye?"  and  then  ask- 
ing, categorically,  "  Whether  of  the  twain  did  the  will  of 
his  father?"     Another  parable,  also,  was  then  applied  by 
the  questions,  "  When  therefore  the  lord  of  the  vineyard 
shall  come,  what  will  he  do  unto  those  husbandmen?" 
and  "  Did  ye  never  read  in  the  Scriptures?"    Group  after 
group  of  his  nominal  scholars  joined  in  this  questioning, 
and  was  met  according  to  the  spirit  of  the  particular 
inquiry.     Interrupted  at  this  point  for  the  day,  the  teach- 
ing exercise  was  resumed  on  the  following  day.     It  was 
begun  with  a  parable  spoken  by  our  Lord.    At  that  point 
the  Pharisees  came  to  him  with  their  wily  question,  "  Is 
it  lawful  to  give  tribute  unto  Caesar,  or  not?  "    Calling  for  a 
specimen  of  the  tribute  money,  our  Lord  asked,  "Whose  is 
this  image  and  superscription?"  and  when  they  answered 
"  C?esar's,"  he  added,  "  Render  therefore  unto  Caesar  the 
things  that  are  Caesar's ;  and  unto  God  the  things  that  are 
God's."    It  was  then  the  Sadducees'  turn,  with  their  knotty 
question  about  the  marriage  relation  after  the  resurrection. 
The  question  our  Lord  met  directly  with  an  affirmation 
of  absolute  truth ;  but  he  followed  this  with  an  instructive 
question  concerning  the  text  of  the  Mosaic  Scriptures, 
which  the  Sadducees  held  to  be  true  and  conclusive:  "As 
touching  the  resurrection  of  the  dead,  have  ye  not  reaft 
that  which  was  spoken  unto  you  by  God,  saying,  I  am  the 
God  of  Abraham,  and  the  God  of  Isaac,  and  the  God  of 
Jacob  ?    God  is  not  the  God  of  the  dead,  but  of  the  living." 
And  so  the  record  of  the  questioning  and  the  answering 
in  that  series  of  teaching  exercises  goes  on,  concerning  the 
law  and  concerning  the  Messiah,  until  it  concludes  with 
the  declaration,  "And  no  man  was  able  to  answer  him 


36  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

a  word,  neither  durst  any  man  from  that  day  forth  ask 
him  any  more  questions."  Can  there  be  any  reasonable 
doubt,  in  view  of  such  an  illustration  as  this,  of  the  Jewish 
method  of  interlocutory  teaching  employed  by  our  Lord, 
that  when  our  Lord  is  referred  to  as  "  teaching,"  as  dis- 
tinct from  his  "  preaching,"  we  are  to  understand  that  the 
term  "  teaching"  applied  to  the  method  of  his  instruction, 
as  well  as  to  its  substance? 

Obviously,  it  is  in  the  light  of  well-known  Jewish  cus- 
toms, rather  than  only  in  the  light  of  classic  Greek  or 
of  modern  English,  that  we  are  to  interpret  the  terms 
"  teach  "  and  "  teaching,"  in  the  narrative  of  our  Saviour's 
life-course.  It  is  in  the  same  light,  also,  that  we  must  read 
the  Great  Commission,  as  it  stands  in  its  one  undisputed 
authentic  form,  at  the  close  of  the  Gospel  of  the  King- 
dom:^ "Go  ye  therefore,  and  make  disciples  [scholars]^ 
of  all  the  nations,  baptizing  them  into  the  name  of  the 
Father  and  of  the  Son  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost:  teaching^ 
them  to  observe  all  things  whatsoever  I  commanded  you: 
and  lo,  I  am  with  you  alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the 
world."    As  the  Jews  would  have  understood  that  charge, 

1  Matt.  28  :  19,  20. 

''According  to  the  Talmud  (Pirqe  Aboth,  I.,  i),  one  of  the  three  funda- 
mental duties  of  the  fathers  in  Israel,  as  communicated  by  God  to  Moses,  by 
Moses  to  Joshua,  by  Joshua  to  the  elders,  by  the  elders  to  the  prophets,  and 
by  the  prophets  to  the  men  of  the  Great  Synagogue,  was  to  "  raise  up  many 
scholars,"  or  to  secure  and  to  train  many  pupils.  Hence,  to  a  Jew,  the  com- 
mand of  our  Lord  to  go  and  make  scholars  of  or  from  among,  all  the  Gentiles, 
had  a  distinct  and  well-defined  meaning. 

3  "  This  teaching,"  says  Alford,  {Greek  Test.,  in  loco,)  "  is  not  merely  the 
kerugma  of  the  gospel — not  mere  proclamation  of  the  good  news — but  the 
whole  catechetical  office  of  the  Church  upon  and  in  the  baptized.  .  .  .  The 
command  is  to  the  Universal  Church — to  be  performed,  in  the  nature  of 
thinirs,  bv  her  ministers  and  teachers." 


ITS  CHK/STLLX  ADOPTION.  37 

and  as  wc  have  every  reason  to  suppose  that  our  Lord 
meant  it,  the  direction  therein  is,  to  organize  Bible-schools 
everywhere  as  the  very  basis,  the  initial  form,  of  the  Chris- 
tian Church.  Grouping  scholars — the  child  and  the  child- 
like— in  classes,  under  skilled  teachers,  for  the  study  of 
the  Word  of  God  by  means  of  an  interlocutory  co-work 
betw  cen  teacher  and  scholars ;  that  is  the  starting-point 
of  Christ's  Church,  as  he  founded  it.  Whatever  else  is 
added,  these  features  must  not  be  lacking. 

And  it  would  seem  that  this  w^as  the  way  in  which  the 
Great  Commission  was  understood  by  the  Apostles  and 
their  immediate  successors.  We  find  little  said  in  explicit 
description  of  the  sanctuary  services  of  the  Apostolic 
Church  ;  partly,  doubtless,  because  so  generally  the  well- 
known  synagogue  services  were  simply  adapted  to  the 
necessities  of  the  new  organization.  Schaff  sums  up  the 
whole  case  at  this  point,  when  he  says  concisely:  "As 
the  Christian  Church  rests  historically  on  the  Jewish 
Church,  so  Christian  worship  and  the  congregational 
organization  rest  on  that  of  the  synagogue,  and  cannot 
be  well  understood  without  it."^  Fisher  says,  with  like 
explicitness :  "The  synagogue  served  as  a  model  in  the 
organization  of  churches."^  It  would  be  strange,  pass- 
ing strange,  if  the  Christian  Church,  while  retaining  the 
other  main  features  of  the  synagogue,  had  ignored  its 
very  chiefest  feature,  the  Bible-school  service;  especially 
as  the  Great  Commission  laid  pre-eminent  emphasis  on 
the  work  therein  included.  Nor  is  there  reason  for  seri- 
ous question  just  here.  There  are  many  indications  in 
the  Book  of  Acts  and  in  the  Epistles  that  "  teaching," 

^  Schaff's  Hist,  of  the  Christian  Church,  I.,  456. 
^  Fisher's  Hist,  of  the  Christian  Church,  p.  35. 


38  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

after  the  pattern  of  the  synagogue  Bible-schools,  was  a 
recognized  agency  for  the  extension  of  the  Christian 
Church,  and  for  the  upbuilding  in  the  new  faith  of  those 
who  were  won  to  Christ  from  the  Jewish  fold  or  from  the 
Gentile  world. 

It  is  said  of  "Peter  and  the  apostles"^  in  Jerusa- 
lem, that,  "  every  day,  in  the  temple  and  at  home,  they 
ceased  not  to  teach  and  to  preach  Jesus  as  the  Christ."^ 
These  apostles  were  Jews  before  they  were  Christians, 
and  it  was  as  Jews  that  they  had  learned  how  to  teach. 
That  they  realized  the  distinction  between  "  teaching " 
and  "  preaching,"  is  evidenced  in  their  frequent  antitheti- 
cal use  of  the  one  term  over  against  the  other.  "  Paul 
and  Barnabas,"  again,  ".tarried  in  Antioch,  teaching  and 
preaching  the  word  of  the  Lord,  with  many  others  also."  ^ 
The  tnttJi  taught  by  these  Christian  teachers  was  very 
different  from  that  which  had  been  there  taught  as  truth 
before  ;  but  the  method  of  the  teaching  was  in  all  proba- 
bility the  same. 

Paul  had  been  a  scholar  in  the  Beth-ha-Midrash  of 
Gamaliel*  He  was  skilled  in  the  teaching  processes  of 
the  best  Jewish  Bible-schools.  As  he  and  Silas  journeyed, 
"  they  came  to  Thessalonica,  where  was  a  synagogue  of 
the  Jews :  and  Paul,  as  his  custom  was,  went  in  unto 
them,  and  for  three  Sabbath  days  [or  for  three  weeks, 
including  the  Mondays  and  Thursdays  between  Sabbaths, 
he]  reasoned  with  them  from  the  Scriptures  [discussed 
with  them  out  of  the  Scriptures  in  Jewish  teaching  fash- 
ion], opening  and  alleging,  that  it  behooved  the  Christ  to 
suffer,  and  to  rise  again   from   the   dead."^     At  Berea, 

1  Acts  S  :  29.  2  Acts  5  :  42.  •''  Acts  15  :  35. 

*  Acts  22 :  3.  ^  Acts  17  :  1-3. 


ITS  CHRIST/AN  ADOPTION.  39 

again,  Paul  did  a  similar  work ;  and  the  record  stands  of 
his  Bercan  hearers,  that  "  these  were  more  noble  than 
those  in  Thessalonica,  in  that  they  received  the  word 
with  all  readiness  of  mind,  examining  [for  themselves] 
the  Scriptures  daily,  whether  these  things  were  so.  Many 
of  them  therefore  [as  might  be  supposed]  believed," 
including  "  Greek  women  of  honorable  estate,  and  of 
men,  not  a  few."  *  At  Athens,  Paul  "  reasoned  [or  dis- 
cussed, in  Bible-school  manner]  in  the  synagogue  with 
the  Jews  and  the  [other]  devout  persons;"  and  he  did 
the  same  thing  "  in  the  market-place  every  day  with  them 
that  met  with  him ;  "^  using  the  interlocutory  or  the  inter- 
colloquial  method  of  teaching  and  learning,  which  was 
the  essence  of  the  Jewish  educational  system. 

The  Beth-ha-Midrash  gatherings,  and  the  Beth-ha- 
Midrash  methods,  seem  to  have  been  the  fresh  starting- 
points  of  the  Christian  Church  in  all  the  earlier  apostolic 
work  under  the  requirements  and  the  authority  of  the 
Great  Commission.  At  Corinth,  Paul  seems  to  have  begun 
his  labors  by  having  a  share  in  the  Beth-ha-Midrash 
exercises  of  the  synagogue.  "And  he  reasoned  in  the 
synagogue  every  Sabbath,  and  persuaded  [or  sought  to 
persuade]  Jews  and  Greeks."  When,  however,  he  made 
bold  to  preach  the  gospel  there,  "  testifying  to  the  Jews 
that  Jesus  was  the  Christ,"  a  breach  was  made  between 
him  and  them,  and  he  went  out,  carrying  with  him  the 
ruler  of  the  synagogue,  and  started  a  new  Bible-school 
in  "the  house  of  a  certain  man  named  Titus  Justus,  .  .  . 
whose  house  joined  hard  to  the  synagogue."  There  he 
continued  "  a  year  and  six  months,  teaching  the  word  of 
God  among  them."^ 

1  Acts  17  :  II,  12.  ^Actsi/tiy.  ^  Acts  18  :   i-ii. 


40  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

At  Ephesus,  after  a  three  months'  trial  of  "  reasoning 
[with]  and  persuading  [or  of  trying  to  persuade  the  Jews 
in  the  synagogue  school]  as  to  the  things  concerning  the 
kingdom  of  God,"  Paul,  as  at  Corinth,  went  out  from  the 
synagogue  school,  taking  with  him  the  Christian  scholars; 
and  he  gathered  the  nucleus  of  a  Christian  Bible-school 
in  connection  with  a  daily  exercise  "  in  the  school  of  Ty- 
rannus,"  which  "continued  for  the  space  of  two  years. "^ 
Again,  for  two  whole  years  Paul  was  similarly  occupied 
"  in  his  own  hired  dwelling"  in  Rome;  "preaching  the 
kingdom  of  God,  and  teaching  the  things  [the  'all  things' 
commanded  of  Christ]  concerning  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ."^ 
That  was  the  way  in  which  our  Lord  had  enjoined  it  upon 
his  disciples  to  extend  and  to  upbuild  his  Church;  by 
making  scholars  of  those  who  would  be  learners,  and  by 
teaching  them  that  which  they  had  need  to  know ;  and 
that  was  the  way  in  which  the  disciples  carried  on  the 
work  which  had  been  committed  to  them  by  our  Lord. 

Incidental  references  to  "  instruction,"^  as  a  well-under- 

1  Acts  19  :  i-io.  ^  Acts  28  :  30,  31. 

^  The  word  katecheo  (to  instruct  catechetically)  has  as  one  of  its  meanings — 
both  in  its  earlier  and  in  its  later  use— the  idea  of  a  sound  resounding,  or  of  a 
sound  given  back  again.  Our  word  "  echo  "  is  from  this  root.  So,  again,  is 
our  word  "catechising"  in  its  modern  signification  of  teaching  by  form  of 
question  and  answer.  (On  this  point  see  Thayer's  Greek-Eng.  Lex.  of  N.  T. ; 
Liddell  and  Scott's  Greek-Eng.  Lex. ;  Schleusner's  Lex.  Grepco-Lat.  in  Nov. 
Test.,  s.  V. ;  with  references  to  Homer,  Hesiod,  Lucian,  etc.).  Whether,  as 
has  been  often  claimed  by  critical  commentators  from  the  days  of  Melanch- 
thon  down,  this  word,  in  its  primitive  meaning,  properly  suggests  a  process  of 
teaching  which  secures  an  answer  back  from  a  sounding  question,  or  whether 
that  idea  is  an  outgrowth  of  its  later  uses,  it  certainly  would  seem  clear  that 
the  term  katecheo,  as  used  in  the  New  Testament,  refers  to  a  method  of  explicit 
and  systematic  teaching  with  which  the  Jewish  Christians  were  familiar ;  while, 
as  has  been  shown,  the  only  method  of  such  teaching  which  we  know  of  as  in 
use  by  the  Jews  at  this  time  and  earlier,  was  by  means  of  question  and  answer. 


ITS  CHRISTIAN  ADOPTION.  41 

stood  process  of  technical  Christian  teaching,  are  made  by- 
Luke  in  connection  with  the  warm-hearted  convert  The- 
ophilus/  and  of  the  eloquent  and  zealous  preacher  Apollos.^ 
"Teachers"^  are  named  among  the  recognized  workers  of 
the  Christian  Church;  and  their  office  work  of  "teaching  "* 
is  given  prominence  in  its  place.  It  is  even  named  as  an 
essential  qualification  of  a  bishop,  that  he  shall  be  "  apt 
to  teach." ^  And  "children"^ — as  those  to  whom  our 
Lord  gave  prominence — are  specifically  included  in  the 
number  of  those  to  whom  the  apostolic  epistles  were  sent 
as  a  fresh  basis  and  outline  of  instruction.  Hence  there 
is  sound  reason  for  supposing  that  the  best  lessons  of  the 
Jewish  Church,  and  the  specific  injunctions  of  the  divine 
Founder  of  the  Christian  Church,  concerning  the  church 
care  of  children,  and  the  systematic  study  of  the  Scrip- 
tures through  the  process  of  interlocutory  instruction, 
were  borne  in  mind,  and  were  put  in  practice  by  the 
divinely  guided  leaders  of  the  Apostolic  Church. 

That  it  was  the  Bible  itself,  the  inspired  text  of  the 

In  other  words,  the  form  of  catechetical  instruction  in  use  by  the  Jews,  and 
again  by  the  first  Jewish  Christians,  is  fairly  to  be  recognized  as  the  interlocu- 
tory form,  whether  the  New  Testament  word  employed  for  its  designation 
would  in  itself  give  proof  of  this  fact,  or  not. 

1  Luke  1 :  4.  Dr.  Schaff  (Schaff-Lange's  Copim.,  in  loco)  says,  at  this  point : 
"Literally,  'catechised,'  '  catechetically  taught ' — katechethes.  The  specific 
word  should  have  been  retained  here  and  elsewhere,  instead  of  the  more 
indefinite  instruct  or  teach.  Catechising  is  a  primitive  and  most  important 
institution  of  the  Church,  and  a  preparatory  school  for  full  membership. 
Archbishop  Usher  says  :  '  The  neglect  of  catechising  is  the  frustrating  of  the 
whole  work  of  the  ministry.' "  (Comp.  also  Meyer's  Co?iint.;  Plumptre,  in 
EUicott's  N.  T.  Comm.  ;  and  Farrar,  in  the  Cambridge  Bible  for  Schools, — 
all  in  loco.)  ^  Acts  18  :  25. 

3  Acts  13 :  I  ;   i  Cor.  12  :  28,  29  ;  Eph.  4:11. 

■•  Rom.  12:7;  Col.  I  :  28  ;  3  :  16.  ^  1  Tim.  3  :  2. 

8  Eph.  6:1;   Col.  3  :  20  ;  2  John  i. 


42  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

sacred  writings,  that  was  to  be  the  subject-matter  of 
teaching  and  of  study  from  childhood  to  maturity  in  the 
church  Bible-school,  is  pointed  out  by  Paul,  in  his  counsel 
to  the  young  bishop  of  Ephesus  concerning  the  training 
work  to  which  he  was  set  of  God.  "  Every  scripture  in- 
spired of  God  is  also  profitable  for  teaching,  for  reproof,  for 
correction,  for  instruction  which  is  in  righteousness:  that 
the  man  of  God  may  be  complete,  furnished  completely 
unto  every  good  work."^  The  word  here  rendered  "in- 
struction "  is  not  katcchcsis,  as  in  some  of  the  cases  noted. 
"  It  is,  in  the  Greek,"  as  a  modern  church  historian  has 
pointed  out,^  " paideia,  from  pais,  a  child,  and  signifies 
an  education  begun  in  childhood ;  or,  if  we  may  fall 
back  upon  the  case  of  Timothy,^  in  the  days  of  lisp- 
ing infancy.  Those  who  have  encountered  Xenophon's 
Cyropcedia,  or  the  education  of  Cyrus  from  his  boy- 
hood, will  recognize  and  catch  in  a  moment  the  word's 
signification.  Christianity,  in  its  comprehensive  plan  for 
a  human  existence,  is  a  Christo-pcdia,  is  intended  [is 
divinely  intended]  to  begin  with  a  child's  first  dawnings 
of  reason  and  conscience ;  and  to  go  on  with  him,  step  by 
step,  till  he  learns,  and  by  Heaven's  grace  fulfills,  all  his 
Christian  responsibilities,  till  he  is  made,  not  worthy, 
indeed,  but,  to  use  scriptural  language,  meet  for  the  inher- 
itance of  the  saints  in  light.  And  the  church,  with  its 
chief  teacher  in  the  pulpit,  and  its  subordinate  teachers 
in  the  Bible-class  and  the  Sunday-school,  is  to  be  the 
grand  instrumentality  for  keeping  God's  truth  alive  and 

1  2  Tim.  3  :  i6,  17. 
^  Dr.  T.  W.  Coit,  in  "  History  of  Catechising  "  in  The  Sunday  School  Times, 
April  19,  1879.     Comp.  "The  Office  of  Catechising,"  ibid.,  July  5,  1879. 
3  2  Tim.  3  :  15. 


ITS  CHRISTIAN  ADOPTION.  43 

prcddiiiinant  in  the  human  mind,  and  bringing  that  truth 
forth  to  victory  for  the  salvation  of  the  soul." 

And  now  let  us  look  back  and  see  what  we  have  ascer- 
tained in  the  course  of  our  investigations  so  far.  Fromf 
the  days  of  Abraham,  systematic  "  instruction  "  had  its 
place  in  the  plans  of  the  chosen  people  of  God.  Frorrj 
the  days  of  Moses,  the  Jewish  Church  had  a  measure? 
of  responsibility  for  the  religious  training  of  the  young. 
From  the  days  of  Ezra,  the  Bible-school  was  a  recognized 
agency,  among  the  Jewish  people,  for  the  study  and  teach- 
ing of  God's  Word.  In  the  days  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth,/ 
there  was,  in  the  land  of  his  birth  and  sojourn,  a  system! 
of  Bible -schools,  corresponding  quite  closely  in  their 
general  features  with  our  modern  Sunday-schools.  The 
elementary  or  primary  schools  in  this  system  gave  chief 
prominence  to  the  study  of  the  Bible  text.  The  advanced 
or  senior  schools  in  this  system  were  a  department  of  the 
synagogue ;  and  in  them  Bible  commentaries,  in  addition 
to  the  Bible  text,  were  a  subject  of  familiar  study.  The 
elementary  schools  were  for  children  only.  The  senior 
schools  had  a  place  for  children  as  well  as  for  adults. 
In  all  the  schools  the  arrangement  was  that  of  scholars 
grouped  under  a  special  teacher;  and  the  process  of  teach- 
ing was  by  form  of  question  and  answer.  Our  Lord 
seems  to  have  been  a  scholar  in  schools  of  this  character; 
and  again  he  was  a  teacher  in  such  schools.  In  founding 
his  Church,  he  made  Bible-school  work  its  basis.  His 
disciples  recognized  the  scope  and  details  of  his  plan, 
and  they  prosecuted  their  labors  of  evangelizing  and  of 
edifying  accordingly.  The  Bible-school  was  the  starting- 
point  of  the  Christian  Church;  and  it  was  by  means  of 


44  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 

Bible-school  methods  that  the  Christian  Church  was  first 
extended  and  upbuilded. 

And  thus  it  is  that  we  find  in  the  history  and  the  tra- 
ditions of  the  biblical  age,  the  Jewish  origin  and  the 
Christian  adoption  of  the  distinguishing  characteristics 
of  th^t  agency  of  religious  teaching  which  is  known  in 
our  day  as  the  Sunday-school. 


LECTURE   II. 


THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL:    SEVENTEEN   CENTURIES 
OF  ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS. 


TI. 

THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL:     SEVENTEEN  CENTURIES 
OF  ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS. 

Christian  Beginnings  in  Gentile  Communities.^ — ^  Questions  and  An- 
swers in  Catechumenical  Instruction. — Questions  and  Answers 
in  Pulpit  Preaching. —  Methods  of  Teaching  in  Alexandria. — 
Evangelizing  by  Mission -schools.  —  Rituahsm  Overshadows 
Bible  Study. — The  Dark  Ages  a  Consec[uence. —  Gleams  of 
Light  in  Darkness. —  Revival  of  Schools  in  the  Reformation. — 
Catechisms  Multiplied. —  Romish  Recognition  of  the  School 
Idea. — Catechisms  as  a  Barrier  to  Catechetical  Teaching. —  A 
Lesson  from  New  England. —  Superiority  of  Teaching  over 
Preaching  in  the  Training  Process. — A  New  Decline  of  the 
Bible-school  Agency. 

So  long  as  the  Christian  Church  found  its  new  centres 
of  evangeHzing  in  Jewish  communities,  the  character  of 
its  sanctuar)^  services  and  the  methods  of  its  training 
work  were,  as  a  matter  of  course,  largely  conformed  to 
the  plan  and  practices  of  the  Jewish  synagogue.^  Its 
Bible-schools  were  based  on  the  synagogue-school  foun- 

1  "  It  must  in  the  first  place  be  remembered  that  the  original  members  of 
the  Christian  brotherhood  were  Jews,  and  were  in  no  haste  to  abandon  the 
religious  customs  of  their  nation.  Christ  had  come  '  not  to  destroy  the  law 
but  to  fulfil,'  and  the  example  of  the  Master  strongly  inculcated  respect  for 
the  ancient  forms.  .  .  .  We  should  naturally,  therefore,  be  prepared  to  find 
in  Jewish  forms  the  starting-point  of  the  development  of  those  adopted  by  the 
Christians"  (G.  Baldwin  Brown's  From  Schola  to  Cathedral ,  p.  5  f.j. 

47 


4^  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

dation,  as  seems  evident  from  the  indications  already 
pointed  out  in  the  Book  of  Acts  and  in  the  Epistles.^ 
But  when  the  Church  gained  a  foot-hold  in  purely  Gentile 
communities,  and  extended  its  membership  among  those 
who  had  known  nothing  of  Jewish  training  methods,  it 
necessarily  varied  its  system  of  instruction,  adapting  the 
details  of  that  system  to  the  peculiar  needs  of  its  new  fields.^ 
For  a  long  time  Christianity  had  no  one  land  and 
people  which  it  controlled  religiously,  as  the  Jewish 
Church  had  had;  hence  it  was  imable  to  enforce  a  uni- 
form church-school  system  in  all  communities  alike,  with 
carefully  graded  instruction  from  the  primary  class  to  the 
divinity  school.  The  best  that  it  could  yet  do  was  to 
provide,  in  every  local  church  gathering,  for  the  cate- 
chetical instruction  of  the  young,  including  the  children 
of  believers,  and  all  other  children  who  could  be  brought 
under  its  care;  and  then  to  establish,  at  certain  large 
centres,  schools  for  the  more  thorough  instruction  in  the 
"all  things"  which  the  fully  furnished  Christian  had  need 
to  know.  And  just  this  it  did  do,  as  ecclesiastical  his- 
tory makes  clear.  Meanwhile  individual  Christians  were 
forward  and  active  in  efforts  to  reach  and  to  teach  the 
young  whenever  and  wherever  they  might  do  so.  For 
this  reason  they  were  always  ready  to  be  teachers  in 
any  school  where  they  might,  by  the  teaching  process, 
impress  the  truth  of  God  on  impressible  minds  and  hearts. 
"The  Apostolic   Church,"   says   Baron   Bunsen,   "made 

^  See  pp.  37-41,  ante. 
2  Hatch,  in  The  Organization  of  the  Early  Christian  Churches  (Bampton 
Lectures  for  1880)  makes  clear  these  two  propositions  (p.  208):  "  i.  That 
the  development  of  the  organization  of  the  Christian  churches  was  gradual. 
2.  That  the  elements  of  which  that  organization  were  composed  were  already 
existing  in  human  society." 


ITS  VARYLYG  PROGRESS.  49 

the  school  the  connecting  link  between  herself  and  the 
world."*  Tertullian's  counsels  concerning  the  relation  of 
Christian  teachers  to  heathen  literature,^  while  engaged 
in  the  work  of  popular  instruction,  are  illustrative  of 
this  truth. 

It  w-as  because  of  the  power  already  obviously  gained 
over  the  popular  mind  by  Christian  teachers,  through  this 
catechetical  teaching-process,  in  the  schools  of  the  Roman 
Empire,  that  Julian  the  Apostate,  in  the  fourth  century, 
"  determined  to  take  the  control  of  education  into  the 
hands  of  the  state;"  and  that  he  Issued  his  formal  edict, 
designed  to  shut  out  all  Christian  teachers  from  those 
schools.  The  Emperor  realized  that  the  continuous  life 
of  Christianity  pivoted  on  the  school  idea, — on  the  inter- 
locutory teaching  of  the  young, — and  that,  if  he  could  put 
an  end  to  this  line  of  Christian  work,  he  could  hope  to 
check  the  permanent  progress  of  Christianity.  As  Bishop 
Lancelot  Andrewes,  two  centuries  ago,  said  of  this  plan  of 
Julian's  :  "  If  he  had  not  been  as  a  cloud  that  soon  pass- 
eth  away,  it  might  have  been  feared  that  in  a  short  time 
he  had  overshadowed  true  religion."  ^  Or  again,  as  more 
recently  Bishop  John  Wordsworth  has  said:  "  If  Julian 
Jiad  lived,  and  this  edict  could  really  have  been  put  into 
force  for  any  time,  it  must  have  been  a  very  dangerous 
instrument  for  the  injury  of  the  faith."*  In  other  words, 
God's  method  of  extending  and  upbuilding  his  Church 

'  Hippolytus  imd  His  Age,  II.,  105. 
*  Tertullian's  "  On  Idolatry,"  ch.  x.,  in  The  Ante-Nicene  Fathers,  III.,  66  f. 
'  The  Pattern  of  Catechistical  Doctrine,  p.  7. 
*  Art.  "  Julianus-Emperor,"  in  Smith's  Diet,   of  Christian  Biog.     Comp. 
Schaff's  Hist,  of  the  Christian  Church,   III.,  53  f.,  and  Fisher's  Hist,  of  the 
Christian  Church,  p.  91. 

4 


50  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

was  the  one  effective   method,  his  enemies   themselves 
being  judges. 

Our  Lord  had  taught  that  children  and  the  child-like 
were  to  be  the  foremost  object  of  his  people's  care,  and 
that  interlocutory  teaching  was  the  method  by  which  his 
cause  should  be  promoted  and  extended  in  the  world. 
His  followers  recognized  the  importance  of  this  twofold 
truth ;  and  from  the  beginning  they  gave  a  chief  place, 
in  the  work  of  evangelizing,  to  efforts  among  children  and 
the  child-like;  and  interlocutory  teaching  was  the  method 
by  which  they  made  the  truths  of  the  gospel  effective 
upon  the  minds  of  those  reached  by  them.  Within  a 
^  century  after  the  apostolic  age,  Celsus,  a  prominent  and 
powerful  opponent  of  Christianity,  charged  Christians  with 
extending  their  numbers  and  propagating  their  views  by 
getting  hold  of  children  privately  in  homes  and  schools, 
and  influencing  them  by  conversations  with  them,  without 
the  knowledge  of  their  parents  or  teachers,  and  thus  leading 
them  away  from  the  religion  of  their  parents.  In  replying 
to  this  charge  of  Celsus,  Origen  did  not  deny  the  main 
facts  of  the  case  as  stated  by  Celsus ;  but  he  insisted  that 
the  children  thus  reached  by  Christians  out  of  Pagan 
homes  were  benefited  by  the  lessons  imparted  to  them, 
and  that  if  their  parents  were  wise  and  well  disposed  they 
would  recognize  this  as  the  truth.^ 

Not  by  great  sermonizers  swaying  the  minds  of  adult 
unbelievers,  but  by  individual  teachers  reaching  and  teach- 
ing children  and  the  child -like  individually,  were  the 
triumphs  of  early  Christianity  mainly  won.  "'  It  is  a  re- 
markable fact,"  says  Schaff,  "that  after  the  days  of  the 

*  Origen's  "Against  Celsus,"  Bk.  iii.,  chs.  55-58  ;  in  TheAnte-Nicene  Fathers, 
IV.,  486  f. 


ITS  VARYING   PR  O  (J  R  ESS.  5  I 

Apostles  no  names  of  great  missionaries  are  m  ;ntioned 
till  the  opening  of  the  Middle  Ages.  .  .  .  There  were  no 
missionary  societies,  no  missionary  institutions,  no  organ- 
ized efforts  in  the  Ante-Nicene  age;  and  yet  in  less  than 
three  hundred  \-cars  from  the  death  of  St.  John  the  '  hole 
population  of  the  Roman  empire,  which  then  represented 
the  civilized  world,  was  nominally  Christianized."'  And 
this  was  because  the  divinely  approved  plan  of  the  child- 
reaching  and  the  child -teaching  methods  of  Christian 
activity  were  adhered  to  by  the  immediate  successors  of 
the  apostles  of  our  Lord. 

The  catechetical  instruction  of  the  Early  Church,  which 
finds  mention  in  the  New  Testament  record,^  grew  in 
prominence  and  in  obvious  importance  until  the  very 
church  edifices  were  constructed  with  a  view  to  the 
accommodation  of  its  subjects.^  Meanwhile  the  fore- 
most niinds  in  the  Church  -at  large  were  gladly  devoted 
to  the  work  of  catechising ;  great  preachers  as  well  as  great 
teachers  being  willing  to  leave  all  other  work,  if  necessary, 
in  order  to  exercise  the  function  of  the  catechist* 

1  Schaff's  Hist,  of  the  Christian  Church,  II.,  19  f. 
2  Luke  1:4;  Acts  18  :  25.     See  notes,  pp*!  \o,  41,  ante. 

*  See  art.  "  Catechumen,"  in  Encyc.  Brit.  ;  also  Bingham's  Antiqiiities  of 
the  Christian  Church,  Bk.  viii.,  chs.  3-7.  "  For  the  Church,"  says  Bingham, 
"  ever  since  she  first  divided  her  catechumens  and  penitents  into  distinct  orders 
and  classes,  had  also  distinct  places  in  the  church  for  them."  "The  .  .  . 
probable  numbers  of  the  members  of  a  congregation  likely  to  be  in  the  con- 
dition of  catechumens,"  says  the  Encyclopcsdia  Britannica,  "  may  serve  to 
explain  in  some  degree  the  architectural  arrangements  still  to  be  seen  in  some 
churches  of  the  early  centuries  [as,  for  example]  .  .  .  the  church  of  St.  Am- 
brose at  Milan,  and  that  of  St.  Clement  at  Rome,  and  some  others."  Thus 
it  would  seem  that  the  providing  accommodations  for  the  Sunday-school 
membership  in  the  church-building  has  the  sanction  of  high  antiquity. 

*  See  De   Pressense's  Christian   Life  and  Practice  in   the   Early  Church, 


y 


52  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

It  is  true — and  it  is  strange  that  it  is  true — that  there 
has  been  some  question  whether  the  catechetical  in- 
struction of  the  Early  Church  included,  as  an  essential 
feature,  the  interlocutory  method  of  teaching.  And  as 
an  often  used  argument  against  the  probability  of  the 
prevalence  of  this  method,  the  unbroken  form  of  the  few 
catechumenical  discourses  preserved  to  us  is  pointed  out.^ 
But,  apart  from  the  fact  that  effective  elementary  teaching 
by  continuous  discourse  to  passive  hearers  is,  and  always 
has  been,  and  ever  must  be,  practically  impossible,  there 
is  evidence  from  various  sources  that  the  early  Christian 
Fathers  no  more  attempted  this  false  method  than  did 
the  Jewish  Rabbis  before  them.  Nor,  indeed,  does  the 
form  of  the  early  catechetical  discourses,  any  more  than 
a  similar  form  in  our  modern  school  text-books,-preclude 
the  idea  that  free  questioning  on  the  substance  of  the 
text  was  deemed  indispensable  as  a  means  of  testing  and 
fixing  the  learner's  knowledge  of  its  meaning.  The 
absence  of  set  questions  and  answers  in  the  text  of  the 
catechetical  discourses  simply  shows  that  the  interlocu- 
tory teaching  of  the  early  catechumens  was  by  means  of 
no  mere  perfunctory  questioning  with  memorized  rote 
answers  in  reply. 

The  fact  that  the  religious  teaching  of  the  Jews,  through 
whom  the  Christians  received  their  religion,  was  mainly 
by  the  approved  means  of  question  and  answer,  renders 
it  most  improbable  that  a  less  effective  method  of  teach- 
ing was  adopted  by  the  best  Christian  instructors  without 

Bk.  I.,  ch.  I,  ?  I ;  also  Proudfit's  "  Catechetical  Instruction  before  the  Refor- 
mation," in  Home,  the  School,  and  the  Church,  IV.,  47. 

1  See,  e.  s^..  Von  Zezschwitz's  art.  "  Katechetik,"  in  Herzog's  Real-Encyc; 
also  Mayer's  Gesch.  d.  Katechiimenats  11.  d.  Katechese,  pp.  6,  255,  269,  300. 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  53 

any  good  reason  for  the  change.  It  is  even  pretty  clear 
that  the  preaching,  or  sermonizing,  or  homihzing,  of  the 
first  two  or  three  Christian  centuries,  was  largely  in  the 
nature  of  interlocutory  conferences  between  the  preacher 
and  his  congregation/  Paniel,  in  his  elaborate  "  Pragmatic 
History  of  Christian  Oratory  and  Preaching,"  throws 
light  on  this  point.  Calling  attention  to  the  fact  that  in 
the  earlier  centuries  "  the  public  edifying  discoursing  in  an 
intelligible  tongue  was  still  quite  generally  called  didas- 
kalia^^hc  says:  " The  didaskalia  was  from  the  beginning 
nothing  else  than  a  mode  of  instruction  which  arose  from 
the  familiar  colloquy  of  the  members  of  the  congregation; 
taking  its  material  from  the  Gospel  narratives,  from  the 
Messianic  prophecies  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  from  the 
stories  of  the  life  and  death  of  the  apostles,  of  their  dis- 
ciples, and  of  the  martyrs."^  Its  immediate  method  was 
the  formal  dialogue.  Its  material  was  suited  to  the  occa- 
sion and  the  hearers.*    "As  religious  questions  were  put 

*  See  Broadus's  Lectures  on  the  History  of  Preaching,  p.  46.  The  very 
term  "  homily,"  applied  to  the  early  Christian  discourses,  would  seem  to  indi- 
cate an  interlocutory  conference  between  the  preacher  and  his  people.  Ho- 
milia  means  "  companionship,"  "  intercourse,"  "  communion."  See  Thayer's 
Greek- Eng.  Lex.  of  X.  T.,  s.  v. 

'  Pragmat.  Gesch.  d.  Christ  I.  Bcredsamkeit  u.  d.  Homiletik,  p.  79.  "  The 
right  to  teach,  however,  was  not  confined  to  the  presbyters  or  official  per- 
sons, but  depended  generally  on  charisma  tcs  didaskalias  [the  grace,  or 
gift,  of  teaching];  and  in  virtue  of  this  charisma  [gift]  the  work  of  teaching 
belonged  also  to  ordinary  members  of  the  church,  i  Cor.  14  :  26.  This,  how- 
ever, did  not  preclude  the  possibility  of  an  official  obligation  to  teach  (not  a 
monopoly)  being  laid  upon  individual  members  of  the  church  who  were  quali- 
fied to  teach  ;  and  so  those  called  to  this  duty  became  the  didaskaloi  of  the 
Church  "  (Beck's  Pastoral  Theology  of  the  New  Testament,  p.  25  f.). 

"^  Pragmat.  Gesch.  d.  Christl.  Beredsamkeit  u.  d.  Homiletii:,  p.  135. 

*  The  inspired  description  of  the  gathering  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  when 
the  Christian  Church,  as  such,  had  its  forming  (Acts  2:  1-40)  illustrates  this 


54  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

to  him,  or  as  the  cdifyhig  conversation  of  members  of  the 
congregation  turned  the  thought  to  a  particular  theme,  the 
preacher  entered  into  explanations  and  contemplatings, 
dwelling  more  fully  on  one  point,  and  more  briefly  on 
another.  A  methodic  development  of  his  own  course  of 
thought  could  be  brought  out  only  so  far  as  the  charac- 
teristics of  his  hearers,  and  as  the  questions  or  objections 
raised  by  them,  made  this  possible.  The  preacher  himself 
was  only  one  of  the  speakers;  even  though  he  was  the 
principal  one.  The  others  were  the  co-speakers,  who 
prompted  the  chief  speaker  to  his  speaking,  and  who 
retained  the  right  to  interrupt  him  at  any  time.  Even 
when  the  ministry  was  transferred  to  a  designated  class 
of  persons,  this  right  of  joining  in  conversation  with  the 
preacher  [as  he  discoursed]  was  not  wholly  surrendered 
by  the  congregation."  ^ 

In  illustration  of  this  latter  claim,  Paniel  points  out^  that 
"  Macarius's  homilies  show  most  clearly  the  intercourse 
which  existed  between  the  preacher  and  his  hearers  in 
the  early  Christian  times.     In  this  regard  they  are  real 

method.  Peter  was  the  chief  speaker  among  the  disciples,  but  by  no  means 
the  only  one.  From  the  time  that  they  "all  .  .  .  began  to  speak  with  other 
tongues,"  until  the  repentant  Jews  interrupted  Peter  with  their  question  to 
him  and  to  "the  rest  of  the  apostles,  '  Brethren,  what  shall  we  do?'"  the 
occasion  would  seem  to  have  been  a  conference,  rather  than  a  congregation 
of  passive  hearers  sitting  before  a  sermonizer.  Yet  here  is  where  we  find  the 
recordof  what  is  known  as  "  Peter's  Sermon."  Justin  Martyr's  familiar  descrip- 
tion ("  Apology,"  i.,  67,  in  The  Antc-Nicetie  Fathers,  I.,  185  f.)  of  the  ordinary 
Sunday  services  of  the  Christians  in  his  day  [the  middle  of  the  second  cen- 
tury] is  quite  consistent  with  this  view  of  the  case.  After  the  reading  of  the 
Scriptures  by  some  of  their  number,  the  chief  one  among  them,  he  says, 
"  verbally /«j/r«c/j  and  «-/?fl;-A  "  in  the  line  of  the  Bible  lessons  ;  thus  con- 
forming to  the  New  Testament  plan  of  "  teaching  and  preaching." 

1  Pragmat.  Gesch.  d.  Christl.  Beredsamkeit  u.  d.  Homiletik,  p.  135. 
*  Ibid.,  p.  400. 


ITS  VARYimi  PROGJUiSS.  55 

'homilies;'  yea,  they,  together  with  some  similar  ser- 
mons by  Ephraem  Syrus,  by  Isaias  Abbas,  and  by  Marcus 
Asketes,  are  the  only  existing  '  homilies '  of  the  oldest 
forms."  ^  If,  indeed,  the  Christian  Fathers  felt  the  need 
of  this  interlocutory  method  of  instruction  in  the  pulpit,^ 
and  yet  ignored  it  in  the  teacher's  chair,  they  must  have 
been  as  contrary-minded  in  their  processes  of  instruction 
as  Herodotus  says  the  Egyptians  were  in  their  religious 
and  social  customs.^  But  the  free  use  of  the  question 
and  answer  form  of  statement  in  the  commentaries  and 
other  religious  writings  of  the  Christian  Fathers,  even 
where  those  writings  were  not  designed  for  elementary 


1  This  statement  of  Paniel  needs  modifying,  in  view  of  the  light  recently 
thrown  on  the  so-called  "  Second  Epistle  of  Clement,"  which  is  shown  to  be 
an  ancient  homily  by  an  unknown  author — the  oldest  homily  preserved  to  us. 
This  homily,  it  is  true,  lacks  the  interlocutory  form  ;  but  there  is  a  reason  for 
this  in  the  fact  that,  probably,  as  Lightfoot  claims  {S.  Clement  of  Rome,  Ap- 
pendix, p.  306,)  "  it  was  not  an  extempore  address,  but  was  delivered  from  a 
manuscript,"  and  was  afterward  made  use  of  by  being  "  read  publicly  to  the 
Christian  congregation  at  Corinth  from  time  to  time."  In  short,  it  is  a  record 
of  the  main  points  made  by  a  teaching-preacher  in  one  of  his  discourses,  rather 
than  an  exhibit  of  his  method  of  teaching. 

*  While  these  Lectures  are  passing  through  the  press,  I  have  a  private  letter 
from  Professor  Dr.  M.  B.  Riddle,  who  is  editing  an  edition  of  Chrysostom's 
■works  {or  ih&  Post-A^kene  Fathers  ;  and  in  this  letter  he  says:  "In  editing 
Chrysostom  I  have  been  struck  by  the  frequency  with  which  he  introduces 
objections  or  queries  {phesin  ['He  says']  is  his  word).  While  his  homilies 
are  continuous,  there  is  a  constant  ideal  interlocutory  process.  See  passim 
his  Homilies."  The  descriptions  preserved  to  us  of  the  freedom  in  conversa- 
tion, and  in  the  showing  of  approval  or  disapproval  of  the  preacher,  on  the 
part  of  Constantinople  audiences,  in  the  days  of  Chrysostom,  would  indicate 
pretty  clearly  that  the  preacher  was  yet  only  the  chief  speaker — and  not  always 
that — at  the  regular  services  of  the  church.  See,  on  this  point,  a  scholarly 
article  on  "  Constantinople  in  the  Fourth  Century,"  from  the  Quarterly  Re- 
view, reprinted  in  LitteW  s  Living  Age  for  November  28,  1846,  p.  431  f. 

3  Hist.,  ii.,  35. 


56  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

religious  instruction/  shows  how  famiUar  this  method  was 
to  them  as  an  element  in  the  ordinary  teaching  process. 

The  imperfect  records  which  are  left  to  us  of  the  great 
catechetical  school  at  Alexandria  would,  however,  seem 
sufficient  to  prove  that  the  teaching  methods  which  had 
before  been  found  effective  in  the  schools  both  of  Jewish 
religion  and  of  Grecian  philosophy,  were  made  use  of 
at  their  best  in  that  school  of  the  Christian  faith — and 
presumably  in  similar  schools  elsewhere.  To  begin 
with,  the  influence  of  the  thought  and  teachings  of  Philo 
Judseus — mediator  as  he  was  between  Moses  and  Plato — 
on  the  founders  of  the  great  Christian  school  at  Alex- 
andria, is  admitted  on  all  sides.^  The  commentaries  of 
Philo  on  the  Pentateuch,  as  preserved  in  their  Armenian 
fragments,  are  arranged  in  the  form  of  question  and 
answer  much  on  the  principle  of  the  modern  larger  cate- 
chisms of  the  different  branches  of  Protestant  Christianity; 
except  that  in  Philo's  work  it  is  the  pupil  who  asks  the 
question,  and  it  is  the  teacher  who  answers  it.^  These 
interrogative  commentaries  of  Philo  are  shown  to  have 
been  made  a  basis  of  the  early  Pentateuchal  teaching  of 
the  catechumens  at  Alexandria  and  beyond,  as  late  as  the 

1  See  citations  from  Basil  and  Athanasius  in  Proudfit's  article,  as  above  ;  also, 
articles  "Apollinaris  "  and  "  Theodoretus  "  in  Smith's  Diet,  of  Christian  Biog. 
Basil's  Greater  and  Lesser  Monastic  Rules,  as  well  as  his  second  book  on 
Baptism,  are  in  the  fjarm  of  question  and  answer.  Apollinaris  the  Elder,  aided 
by  his  son  of  the  same  name,  adapted  the  Gospels  and  the  Epistles  of  the  New 
Testament  "  to  the  form  of  Socratic  disputation."  Theodoret's  commentaries 
"  upon  the  historical  books  of  the  Old  Testament,  from  Genesis  to  2  Chronicles, 
are  in  the  form  of  question  and  answer  upon  the  more  difficult  passages." 
"  Fourteen  books  of  questions  and  answers  [on  the  Bible  text]  form  the  first 
volume  of  Schulze's  edition  of  Theodoret." 

2  See  Bigg's  The  Christian  Platonisfs  of  Alexandria,  passim. 
3  Opera,  VI.,  VII.     Comp.  Vitringa,  as  cited  at  p.  20,  ante. 


JTS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  57 

days  of  Ambrose  and  Augustine;^  and  it  is  certainly  fair 
to  presume  that  their  substance  and  method  were  also 
found  available  all  the  way  between  these  times. 

Clement,  who  was  at  the  head  of  the  Alexandrian 
school  before  the  close  of  the  second  century,  tells  in 
his  Stromata  ("Miscellanies")  of  his  indebtedness  as 
a  teacher  to  the  methods  of  his  former  instructors, — 
presumably  Tatian,  Theodotus,  and  Panta^nus.^  And 
these  methods,  as  indicated  by  Clement,  recognize  the 
fundamental  idea  of  the  learner's  need  of  mental  effort 
as  a  means  of  receiving  and  retaining  truth.  Thus,  for 
example :  "  By  teaching  one  learns;"^  "  Use  keeps  steel 
brighter,  but  disuse  produces  rust  on  it;"  "Wells,  when 
pumped  out,  yield  purer  water,  and  that  of  which  no  one 
partakes  turns  to  putrefaction."  "In  a  word,  exercise 
produces  a  healthy  condition  both  in  souls  and  bodies."* 
It  is  certainly  fair  to  assume  that  the  methods  of  teaching 
which  Clement  recognized  as  the  best,  were  not  neglected 
by  him  in  his  work  as  a  teacher. 

Origen,  yet  more  distinctively  than  Clement,  was  a 
representative  teacher  of  the  catechumens  ;  as  he  was  the 
representative  scholar  of  his  age.  Origen  is,  indeed, 
characterized  by  Dr.  Bigg,  in  his  recent  study  of  "  the 
Christian  Platonists  of  Alexandria,"  as  "  the  first  great 
preacher,  the  first  great  commentator,  the  first  great  dog- 
matist"   of  the  post -Apostolic  Church.''     The  teaching 

iSee,  if.  ^^.,  Harris's  Fragments  of  Pliilo  Ji/Jcrus,  p.  3;  also  Harris's    The 
Teaching  of  the  Apostles,  p.  63. 

'^  See  Clement's  Works  in  The  Ante-Nicene  Fathers,  \\.,  301  f. 

3  This  is  a  repetition  of  Cicero's  aphorism,  Docendo  discinius, — "  By  teaching 
we  learn."     Impression  is  made  in  expression. 

*  The  Ante-Nicene  Fathers,  H.,  302  a. 

*  The  Christian  Plat,  of  Alex.,  p.  113. 


58  ■       THE  SbNDAY-SCHOOL: 

methods  of  Origen  are,  therefore,  to  be  recognized  as  the 
best  known  methods  of  his  day ;  and  they,  fortunately, 
are  not  obscure.  Gregory  Thaumaturgus,  who  was  a 
pupil  of  Origen,  sounded  the  praises  of  his  teacher  as  a 
master  in  the  Socratic  method  of  instruction ;  "  and  for 
the  way  in  which  this  teacher  probed  his  [the  pupil's] 
inmost  soul  with  questions."^  Neander,  in  treating  the 
history  and  methods  of  the  school  at  Alexandria,  says : 
"  The  patience  and  skill  which  must  be  exercised  by  these 
Alexandrian  teachers,  in  answering  the  multifarious  ques- 
tions which  would  be  proposed  to  them,  is  intimated  by 
Origen  [in  his  notes  on  our  Lord's  manner  of  meeting 
captious  questioners  ^]  when  he  requires  of  the  Christian 
teachers  [or  catechists]  that  they  should  follow  Christ's 
example,  and  not  show  a  fretful  spirit,  if  they  should  be 
pushed  with  questions  propounded  not  for  the  sake  of 
learning,  [from  the  teachers,]  but  for  the  purpose  of  put- 
ting them  to  the  proof  "^ 

Johann  Mayer,  the  eminent  Roman  Catholic  historian 
of  catechetics,  who  argues  against  the  idea  that  the  inter- 
locutoiy  method  was  the  prevailing  one  in  the  Early 
Church,^ — even  he  recognizes  the  fact  that  in  the  treat- 
ment o{  nncvangclizcd  ^vv^A?,  the  teaching  process  involved 
the  freest  use  of  question  and  answer.  He  shows  by  the 
testimony  of  Eusebius,^  and  by  the  statements  of  Origen 
in  his  controversy  with  Celsus,**  that  no  attempt  was  made 
to  win  and  train  young  heathen  without  full  and  thorough 

1  Art.  "  Gregorius  Thaumaturgus,"  in  Smith's  Diet,  of  Christian  Biog. 

2  Matt.,  Tom.  XIV.,  §  i6. 

3  Gen.  Hist,  of  the  Christian  Religion  and  Church,  I.,  528. 

*  Gesch.  d.  Katechumenats  u.  d.  Katcchese,  pp.  6,  255,  269,  300. 

6  Hist.  Eccl.,  v.,  10.  ^  Contra  Cclsuni,  iii.,  52  ;  vi.,  10. 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  59 

interlocutory  instruction.  In  this  line  he-  says  that  the 
catcchist  "  paid  due  rei^ard  to  the  individuality,  to  the 
age,  to  the  sex,  and  to  the  rank  of  each  person  [thus  dealt 
with],  with  the  most  generous  consideratcness," — on  the 
teacher's  part.  And  thus  it  was,  as  he  thinks,  that  "  Origen 
devoted  himself  to  the  instruction  of  one  person  at  a  time, 
or  of  a  {q.\^  persons  who  were  alike  in  spirit  and  in  acquire- 
ments, or  who  were  united  in  bonds  of  friendship."  ^  But 
the  proving  of  this  proves  more  than  this.  If,  indeed,  the 
interlocutory  teaching  process  was  employed  in  the  win- 
ning and  training  of  the  heathen  because  it  was  found  to 
be  the  best  method,  it  is  hardly  to  be  supposed  that  a 
poorer  method  was  employed  in  the  instruction  of  young 
Christians. 

Origen,  indeed,  places  the  interlocutory  method  above 
the  hortatory  or  didactic  method,  as  a  means  of  edifying 
the  hearer.  "  We  put  the  gospel  before  each  one,  as  his 
character  and  disposition  may  fit  him  to  receive  it,"  he 
says;  " inasmuch  as  we  have  learned  to  know  'how  we 
ought  to  answer  every  man '  [each  one,  individually].^ 
And  there  are  some  who  are  capable  of  receiving  nothing 
more  than  an  exhortation  to  believe,  and  to  those  we  ad- 
dress that  [exhortation]  alone;  while  we  approach  others, 
again,  as  far  as  possible,  in  the  way  of  demonstration,  by 
means  of  question  and  answer."^  That  is  to  say,  in  hope- 
ful cases  teaching  was  the  method ;  in  other  cases,  ex- 
horting was  all  that  could  be  attempted. 

Augustine,  again,  would  seem  to  put  this  matter  of 
methods  with  catechumens  beyond  all  reasonable  doubt. 
In  his  book,  "  Catechising  of  the  Uninstructed,"  prepared 
as  a  guide  to  a  catechist  at  Carthage,  he  details  the  several 

'  Gesch.,  p.  255.  "-  Col.  4:6.  3  "Against  Celsus,"  vi.,  10. 


6o  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

steps  ill  the  process  of  wise  catechising.  He  insists  that 
each  pupil  should  be  treated  according  to  his  individual 
needs ;  and  that  to  this  end  the  catechist  should  examine 
him  by  preliminary  questioning  as  to  his  motives  and  as 
to  his  attainments,  with  a  view  to  making  the  pupil's 
present  error  or  lack  the  starting-point  of  his  particular 
instruction.^  Similarly,  all  the  way  along  in  his  teaching, 
the  pupil,  according  to  Augustine,  must  be  watched  and 
questioned,  and  carefully  dealt  with  individually ;  so  that 
he  may  be  caused  to  kiioiv  rather  than  merely  be  caused 
to  licar  the  truth  which  is,  for  the  time  being,  the  sub- 
stance of  the  catechetical  instruction.  Every  effort  to 
secure  both  free  questioning  and  frank  answering  by  the 
pupil  himself,  is  to  be  made  by  the  catechist,  step  by  step, 
in  his  course  of  catechetical  teaching.^  It  is  the  individual 
pupil  who  is  to  be  taught ;  not  the  assembly  which  is  to 
be  harangued,  in  the  instruction  of  catechumens.^  That 
is  the  point  which  Augustine  emphasizes. 

In  a  specimen  discourse  to  catechumens  on  the  Creed,* 
Augustine  seems  to  illustrate  his  method  of  questioning 
by  his  frequent  introduction  of  questions,  to  which  he 
appends  his  own  answers ;  as  if  this  were  in  the  line  of 
his  habit  of  teaching.  Thus:  "What  next?  .  ,  .  'was 
crucified,  dead,  and  buried.'  Who?  What?  For  whom? 
— Who?  God's  only  Son,  our  Lord.  What?  Crucified, 
dead,  and  buried.  For  whom?  For  [the]  ungodly  and 
sinners."  And  so  on  in  this  discourse,  which  was  to  be 
the  basis  of  instruction  in  the  meaning  of  the  articles  of 
the  Creed.     By  all  these  glimpses  of  the  current  of  events 

1  "  Catechising  of  the  Uninstructed,"  ch.  5;  va  Nicene  and  Post-Nicene 
Fathers,  III.,  288  b.  '  Ibid.,  chs.  8,  13.  ''  Ihid.,  ch.  16. 

*  "  On  ihe  Creed,"  ?7,  in  Niceiie and rost-Nicene  Fathers,  III.,  371. 


ITS  VARYING   PROGRESS.  6 1 

in  the  Early  Church,  it  would  seem  clear  that  th.Q  process 
of  religious  teaching  was  much  the  same  under  both 
Jewish  and  Christian  instructors,  in  whatever  form  the 
text  of  the  teaching  matter  was  presented. 

In  short,  as  Kraussold,  a  recent  and  very  high  German 
authority  concerning  the  history  of  catechetics,  sums  up 
the  case  in  the  matter  of  the  early  Christian  catechumen- 
ical  schools :  "  The  method  of  instruction  was  at  first 
declaratory.  That,  at  the  same  time,  the  interrogatory 
method  was  employed,  is  self-evident."^  In  other  words, 
even  if  the  teacher  declared  in  advance  what  he  intended 
to  teach,  when  he  came  to  attempt  the  teaching  of  that 
which  he  had  declared,  he  used  the  ordinary  and  proper 
teaching  method,  which  includes  question  and  answer. 
That  is  "  self-evident." 

This  much  we  know  of  the  early  Christian  catechumen- 
ical  and  other  catechetical  schools,  as  illustrated  by  the 
great  one  in  Alexandria,  and  by  less  prominent  ones 
elsewhere ;  they  included  in  their  membership  children 
and  adults  of  both  sexes ;  ^  among  their  teachers  were 
laymen  and  w^omen;^  the  scholars  were  taught  individu- 
ally;* the  interlocutory  method  of  teaching  was  used 
freely;^  and  the  subject-matter  of  instruction  began  with 
the  Old  Testament  story  of  creation,  and  went  on  to  the 
most  practical  details  of  the  Christian  life.^     And  this  is 

'  Die  Katcclictik  fiir  Schule  u.  Kirche,  p.  i8. 
'  See  Bingham's  Antiquities,  Bk.  ii.,  ch.  22,  ^  9 ;  Bk.  x.,  ch.  i,  ?  4. 
'  Ihid.,  Bk.  ii.,  ch.  22,  ^  9  ;  Bk.  iii.,  ch.  10,  ^^  2,  3 ;  Bk.  viii.,  ch.  7,  ^  12; 
Bk.  xiv.,  ch.  4,  ?  5.  *  Ibid.,  Bk.  x.,  ch.  i,  g^  3,  6 ;  ch.  2,  I  5. 

5  Ibid.,  Bk.  X.,  ch.  2,  g  7 ;  Bk.  xiv.,  ch.  4,  ^  26. 
6  Ibid.,  Bk.  X.,  ch.  i,  §g  6,  7.     Comp.  De  Pressense's  Christian  Life  and 
Practice  in  the  Early  Church,  Bk.  i.,  ch.  7.     See,  also,  articles  on  "  Catechet- 
ics "  and  "  Catechumens,"  in  Herzog's  Real-Encyc;  Smith  and  Cheetham's 


62  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

in  itself  a  description,  or  a  delineation,  of  the  Sunday- 
school  of  to-day,  in  its  main  and  essential  features.^ 

As  the  Christian  Church  gained  in  the  scope  of  its 
power  as  an  organization,  and  came  to  have  control  of 
extended  communities,  provinces,  or  nationalities,  and  as 
it  reached  out  for  the  evangelizhig  of  new  countries,  its 
formal  recognition  of  the  value  of  the  church  Bible-school 
corresponded  yet  more  nearly  with  the  ancient  Jewish 
polity  in  the  land  of  Palestine.  When,  for  example,  at 
J  the  very  beginning  of  the  fourth  century,  St.  Gregory, 
the  Illuminator,  entered  upon  his  work  of  christianizing 
Armenia,  he  adopted  a  compulsory  system  of  Bible- 
schools  for  the  children  in  every  city  there ;  and  by  this 
means  it  was  that  Armenia  was  built  up  in  the  Christian 
faith.^  And  it  would  seem  that  at  that  period,  as  also 
earlier,  there  were  public  schools  for  the  training  of  both 
heathen  and  Christian  children  in  the  knowledge  of  the 
Scriptures,  in  Mesopotamia,  Cappadocia,  Egypt,  and  else- 
where.^    Bingham,  indeed,  calls  attention  to  a  specific 

Diet,  of  Christian  Antiq.;  Encyc.  Brit.;  and  McClintock  and  Strong's 
Cyc.  of  Bib.,  Theol.,  and  Eccl.  Lit.  ;  and  article  on  "  Catechetical  Instruction 
before  the  Reformation,"  in  Home,  the  School  and  the  Church,  IV.,  46  f. 

1  "  In  the  Primitive  Church,  not  only  men  and  women,  but  children,  were 
encouraged  and  trained  up  from  their  infancy  to  the  reading  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures  ;  and  the  catechumens  were  .  .  .  obliged  to  lea7-n  the  Scriptures 
as  a  part  of  their  discipline  and  instruction,  .  .  .  [moreover]  children  were 
trained  up  to  the  use  of  the  Holy  Scriptures.  And  of  this  we  have  undoubted 
evidence  from  many  eminent  instances  of  their  practice  [e.  g.,  Eusebius, 
Socrates,  Sozomen,  and  Gregory  of  Nyssa,  are  here  quoted  in  illustration  of 
this  custom].  .  .  .  And  it  is  observable,  that  as  there  were  many  catechetical 
schools  in  those  times  for  explaining  the  Scriptures  to  the  catechumens,  so 
there  were  also  schools  appointed  in  many  churches  to  instruct  the  youth  in 
the  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures  "  (Bingham's  Antiq.,  Bk.  xiii.,  ch.  4,  g  9). 
*  Ibid.,  Bk.  xiii.,ch.  4,  g  9. 
^  Ibid.;  also  Bk.  viii.,  ch.  7,  ^  12. 


ITS  VARYING  PR  OGRESS.  63 

"  canon  attributed  to  the  sixth  General  Council  oi  Con- 
stantinople [A.  D.  680],  which  promotes  the  setting  up 
of  charity  schools  [Robert  Raikes'  Sunday-schools]  in 
all  country  churches;"^  as  practically  they  were  already 
to  be  found  in  the  cathedral  churches  generally.^ 

In  all  these  Christian  church-schools,  as  in  the  earlier 
Jewish  church-schools,  it  was  the  Bible  text  itself  which 
was  the  primary  subject  of  study  and  of  teaching.  Very 
young  children  were  taught  to  memorize  the  Scriptures, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  understand  them.^  Illustrations 
abound  in  ecclesiastical  works  of  the  fourth  and  fifth  cen- 
turies, of  persons  who  had  become  so  familiar  with  the 
Scriptures  as  to  be  able  to  recite  large  portions  of  them 
— in  some  cases  the  entire  Old  and  New  Testaments — 
without  the  aid  of  a  book.*  Yet  this  memorizing  of  the 
Bible  text  was  but  incidental  to  the  Bible-school  teaching; 
it  was  not  itself  deemed  the  teaching. 

Thus  it  is  clear  that  the  early  Christian  Church  was 
not  unfaithful  to  its  trust,  nor  unmindful  of  the  duty 
imposed  upon  it  by  the  Great  Commission.  It  organized 
Bible-schools  far  and  near,  as  a  means  of  instructing  its 
converts,  and  of  training  its  membership.  And  so  it 
continued  to  do,  so  long  as  it  wisely  followed  the  injunc- 
tions of  its  Divine  Founder.  But  as  it  grew  in  worldly 
prominence  and  lost  in  spiritual  life,  changes  came  in  the 
methods  of  its  training  work.  Its  ritual  services  were 
expanded,  and  its  teaching  exercises  were  diminished. 
"  Teaching  gained  in  proportion  as  ritualism  lost,"  says 
De  Pressense;'  and  conversely,  teaching  lost  as  ritualism 

1  Antiq.,  Bk.  viii.,  ch.  7,  \  12.  2  /^/,/^  Bk.  iii.,  ch.  10,  \  4. 

3  Ibid.,  Bk.  X.,  ch.  i,  ^  J  6,  7  ;   xiii.,  ch.  4,  ^  9. 
*  Ibid.,  Bk   xiii.,  ch.  4,  g  9.  ^  The  Apostolic  Era,  Bk.  ii..  ch.  6,  g  I. 


64  THE  SUN  DA  Y-  SCHO  OL  : 

gained.  Or,  as  Proudfit  represents  it,  when  "  the  ecclesi- 
astical spirit  overcame  the  evangelical,  and  the  church 
grew  .  .  .  worldly  and  material  in  all  her  institutions  and 
instrumentalities,  .  .  .  making  more  of  a  splendid  ritual 
than  of  a  pure  faith,  and  magnifying  church  orthodoxy 
above  vital  piety,  .  .  .  catechetical  instruction,  of  course, 
declined."^ 

In  the  recently  issued  valuable  work  of  Mr.  Henry  C. 
Lea,  on  the  history  of  the  Inquisition,  it  is  shown  con- 
clusively, by  that  impartial  historian  of  the  religious  his- 
tory of  the  Middle  Ages,  that  the  decline  of  the  spirit- 
y/  ual  life  of  the  Church  was  attributable  to  the  neglect,  by 
the  Church,  of  its  educational  function."  It  is  also  shown 
by  Mr.  Lea,  as  it  has  been  shown  by  so  many  other 
historians  before,  that  the  gleams  of  a  purer  life,  and  the 
struggles  toward  a  better  state  of  things,  meantime,  were 
among  and  on  the  part  of  those  who  studied  and  taught 
the  Bible,  and  who  sought  to  secure  Bible  instruction  for 
the  people  generally. 

It  stands  out  most  clearly  in  the  ecclesiastical  history 
of  the  Middle  Ages,  that  where  the  Christian  life  was 
purest,  in  those  times  of  general  decline,  was  where  the 
Bible-school  idea  was  adhered  to  most  closely  as  a  means 
of  religious  instruction  and  training.'    Peculiarly  was  this 

1  See  Proud-fit's  article,  as  before  cited. 
2  Hist,  of  the  Inquisition,  Bk.  i.,  clis.  i-6. 

3  The  earlier  form  of  "catechism,"  or  manual  for  elementary  religious  in- 
struction, consisted  of  the  Creed,  the  Lord's  Prayer,  and  the  Ten  Command- 
ments, with  or  without  explanation  and  comment.  In  this  form  it  shows  itself  in 
the  work  of  "  Kero,  monk  of  St.  Gall  (about  720)  ;  Notker,  of  St.  Gall  (d.  912) ; 
Otfried,  monkof  Weissenbourg(d.  after  870),  and  others"  (Schaff's  Creeds  of 
Christendom,  I.,  246).  "  One  of  the  earliest — in  fact,  the  first  known  cate- 
chism in  the  English  language — was  written  by  Wyclif.     A  copy  of  it,  in  the 


JTS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  65 

the  case  with  the  Waldcnses,  the  Albigenses,  the  Lollards 
or  WicHfites,  the  Bohemian  Brethren  or  Hussites,  and  the 
Brethren  of  the  Common  Life.^  Not  the  pure  liturgy,  nor 
yet  the  faithful  pulpit,  but  the  divinely  appointed  Bible- 
school —  in  its  more  primitive  elements — was  the  dis- 
tinctive means  of  their  preservation  from  the  wellnigh 
universal  defection.^ 

British  Museum,  bears  the  date  of  1372.  .  .  .  It  was  designed  '  to  teach  simple 
men  and  women  the  right  way  to  heaven.'  The  first  three  of  the  thirteen 
sections  into  which  it  is  divided,  contain  catechisms  on  the  Creed,  the  Lord's 
Prayer,  and  the  Commandments."  (See  Dr.  J.  Hammond  Trumbull's  article 
on  "  Catechisms  of  Old  and  New  England,"  in  The  Sunday  School  Times  for 
September  8,  1883.)  The  "  Primer,"  as  "  a  manual  oi primary  instruction  ■•■ 
religious  truth  and  practice,"  finds  mention,  at  about  the  time  of  Wiclii,  m 
Piers  Plowman's  Vision,  and  in  Chaucer's  The  Prioresses  Tale.  Maskell 
{Monutnenfa  Ritualia  EcclcsicB  AnglicancB ,  II.,  xlv)  says  of  the  Primer,  that 
it  "  may  have  been  well  known  in  the  early  days  even  of  the  Anglo-Saxons; 
...  for  there  never  was  a  period,  in  the  history  of  the  English  Church, 
when  care  was  not  taken  to  enforce  upon  all  priests  the  duty  of  teaching  their 
people  the  rudiments  of  faith,  in  the  vulgar  tongue,  and  to  provide  books  fitted 
for  that  purpose."  (See  Dr.  J.  Hammond  Trumbull's  article  on  "  The  New 
England  Primer  and  its  Predecessors,"  in  The  Sunday  School  Times  for 
April  29,  1882.) 

1  Schaff  says  {Creeds  of  Christendom ,  I.,  569) :  "The  Waldenses  formed 
at  first  no  separate  church,  but  an  ecclesiola  in  ecclesia  ['  a  churchette  within 
a  church  '],  a  pious  lay  community  of  Bible  readers.  They  were  well  versed 
in  Scripture,  and  maintained  its  supremacy  over  the  traditions  of  men ;  they 
preached  the  gospel  to  the  poor,  allowing  women  also  to  preach  "  — or  rather, 
perhaps,  to  teach  in  this  "  lay  community  of  Bible  readers  ;  "  as  women  taught 
in  the  catechumenical  school  at  Alexandria,  and  as  they  teach  in  the  Sunday- 
schools  of  to-day.  The  Waldensian  Catechism  presents  important  phases  of 
Scripture  truth.  It  "  must  have  been  written  before  1500;  while  the  Bohemian 
[Catechism]  in  the  form  in  which  it  was  presented  to  Luther,  first  appeared 
in  print  in  1521  or  1522.  .  .  .  Palacky  brought  to  light  (1869)  a  similar  Cate- 
chism, which  he  derives  from  Hus  before  1414"  (Schaff,  as  above,  I.,  572). 

2  See  Schaff's  Creeds  of  Christendom,  I.,  246  ;  art.  "  Catechisms,"  in  Schaff- 
Herzog's  Encyc.  of  Relig.  Know  I. ;  art.  "Catechumen"  and  art.  "Educa- 
tion," in  Encyc.  Brit.;  and  art.  "  Catechetics  "  and  art.  "Catechisms,"  in 
McClintock  and  Strong's  Cyc.  of  Bib.,  TheoL,  and  Eccles.  Lit. 

5 


66  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

An  admirable  illustration  of  this  truth  is  furnished  in 
the  recorded  testimony  of  Reinerius,  an  emissary  from 
Rome  to  the  Waldenses,  in  his  report  concerning  the 
Bible-teaching  prevalent  among  that  people  in  the  thir- 
teenth century.  "  He  who  has  been  a  disciple  [in  their 
fold]  for  seven  days,"  he  said,  "  looks  out  some  one  whom 
he  may  teach  in  his  turn ;  so  that  there  is  a  continual 
increase  [of  them].  If  any  would  excuse  himself  [from 
learnmg]  they  say  to  him,  '  Only  learn  one  word  every 
day,  and  at  the  end  of  the  year  you  will  have  three  hun- 
dred [words]  ;  and  so  [you  will]  make  progress.'  ...  I 
have  heard  one  of  these  poor  peasants  repeat  the  whole 
Book  of  Job  by  heart,  without  missing  a  single  \vord ; 
and  there  are  others  who  have  the  whole  of  the  New 
Testament  by  heart,  and  much  of  the  Old ;  nor  .  .  .  will 
they  listen  to  anything  else,  saying  that  all  sermons  which 
are  not  proved  by  Scripture  are  unworthy  of  belief"  ^ 
The  Waldenses,  by  the  way,  came  originally  from  Lyons, 
where  the  cathedral  catechetical  school  had  long  been  of 
exceptional  efficiency  in  securing  religious  instruction, 
however  intermingled  with  error,  to  the  young.^ 

From  the  beginning,  in  short,  all  the  way  down  the 
centuries,  the  history  of  the  Christian  Church  shows  that 
just  in  proportion  as  the  church  Bible-school — the  Sun- 
J  day-school,  as  we  now  call  it — has  been  accorded  the 
place  which  our  Lord  assigned  to  it  in  the  original  plan 
of  his  Church,  has  substantial  progress  been  made  in  the 
extending  of  the  membership,  and  in  the  upbuilding — the 
"edifying" — of  the  body  of  Christian  believers  in  the 

1  Cited  in  Henderson's  The  Vaudois,  p.  102.  See,  also,  Latrobe-Cranz's 
Hist,  of  the  Brethren,  p.  15  f. 

"^  See  art.  "  Waldenses,"  in  Schaff-Herzog's  E?icyc. 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  67 

knowledge  of  God's  Word  and  in  the  practice  of  its  pre- 
cepts. And  just  in  proportion  as  the  Sunday-school 
agency,  or  its  practical  equivalent  under  some  name  or 
form,  has  been  lackino-  or  has  been  iraored,  has  the 
Church  failed  of  retaining  and  continuing  the  vital  power 
of  its  membership. 

Do  not  misunderstand  me  here.  Every  great  reform, 
in  the  Church,  or  in  nominally  religious  communities, 
since  the  days  of  John  the  Baptist  and  of  Peter,  has  been 
brought  about  by  preaching.  Christians  have  been  aroused 
from  their  sloth,  and  siniTers  have  been  startled  in  and 
from  their  sins,  by  the  clarion  voice  of  the  herald-preacher. 
Preaching  has  been  and  is,  and  istobe.  the  pre-eminent 
agency  for  the  warning  and  calHng^oLsiniifxs^and for  the 
exhorting  and  directing  of  saints.  But  the  religious  train- 
ing of  any  people  has  been  attained,  and  the  results  of" 
any  great  reformation  have  been  made  permanent,  only 
through  a  process  of  interlocutory, 'or  catechetical,  teach- 
ing;  such  as  forms  the  distinguishing  characteristics  of 
the  technical  Sunday-school. 

A  few  representative  illustrations  of  this  universal  truth 
are  as  good  as  more.  It  was  by  preaching  that  the  great 
Reformation  of  the  sixteenth  century  was  brought  about ; 
but  no  one  of  the  chief  reformers  of  that  period  was  unwise 
enough  to  suppose  that  preaching  was  to  retain  and  to 
build  up  in  the  pure  faith  of  God's  Word  those  who, 
through  preaching,  had  been  rescued  from  the  embraces 
of  error.  Luther  saw  the  need  of  a  system  of  Bible-schools 
in  the  new  Protestant  world,  as  plainly  as  Simon  ben  She- 
tach  saw  that  need  in  the  ancient  Jewish  world.  "  Young 
children  and  scholars  are  the  seed  and  the  source  of  the 
Church!"  rang  out  the  warning  voice  of  Luther.     "  F'or 


68  THE  SUN  DA  F-  SCHO  OL  : 

the  Church's  sake,  Christian  schools  must  be  established 
and  maintained,"  he  added ;  "  [for]  God  maintains  the 
Church  through  the  schools."^  Luther  even  went  so  far 
as  to  say  that  a  clergyman  was  not  fairly  fitted  to  be  a 
preacher  unless  he  had  first  been  a  teacher ;  that,  in  fact, 
a  bishop  ought  to  give  proof,  before  being  a  bishop,,  that 
he  had  aptness  to  teach.  "  I  would  that  nobody  should 
be  chosen  as  a  minister  if  he  were  not  before  this  a  school- 
master," ^  was  Luther's  putting  of  this  opinion. 

Luther  personally  prepared  two  catechisms,  a  Larger, 
and  a  Smaller,  as  helps  to  religious  teaching ;  and  his  co- 
workers and  successors  prepared  others.  Calvin  took  a 
similar  view  of  the  duty  of  the  Church  to  instruct  the 
young  and  the  ignorant  by  interlocutory  teaching ;  and 
he  also  prepared  two  catechetical  lesson-helps,  or  lesson- 
guides,  first  in  French,  and  afterwards  in  Latin.  These 
catechisms  by  Luther  and  Calvin  were  translated  into 
various  languages,  and  were  used  widely  among  the 
Protestants  of  Europe  and  of  Great  Britain.  Zwingle  and 
Beza  in  Switzerland,  Knox  in  Scotland,  Cranmer  and 
Ridley  in  England,  and  Usher  in  Ireland,  and  many  other 
representative  leaders  in  the  Reformation,  were  alive  to 
the  importance  of  the  revival  of  the  primitive  church- 
school  idea,  as  the  hope  of  stability  and  growth  for  the 
Church  of  Christ.  Just  so  far,  in  fact,  as  this  di\inely  com- 
manded method  of  religious  training  was  newly  adopted 
and  adhered  to,  were  the  best  fruits  of  the  Reformation 
preserved  and  transmitted ;  and  where  there  was  chiefest 
lack  in  this  direction,  the  influence  of  the  Reformers  and 
of  their  work  gradually  diminished,  or  faded  away.^ 

*  Cited  in  Schumann's  Lehrh.  d.  Paedag.,  p.  144.  2  [HJ^ 

'  See  articles  "  Catechisms  "  and  "  Catechetics,"  in  Schaff-Herzog's  Encyc, 


ITS  VARYING  rROGRESS.  69 

Indeed,  had  it  not  been  for  the  rising  up  at  that  time, 
in  the  Roman  CathoHc  Church,  of  a  new  apostle  of  the 
church-school  idea,  and  for  the  wonderful  effectiveness  of 
his  work  of  restoring  to  that  Church  this  primitive  agency 
of  religious  teaching,  it  would  seem  that  the  power  of  the 
Church  of  Rome  as  such  would  have  been  permanently 
broken,  or  hopelessly  hampered,  by  the  labors  of  the 
reformers.  Ignatius  Loyola,  the  founder  of  the  Society 
of  Jesus,  with  Lainez,  Aquaviva,  Xavier,  and  others  of 
his  immediate  associates,  despairing  of  turning  back  the 
tide  of  battle  against  Rome  and  her  institutions,  as  then 
waged  under  the  pulpit  leaders  of  the  opposing  host,  con- 
ceived the  plan  of  reaching  out  after  the  children  of  the 
combatants,  and  of  rearing  up  in  them  a  new  generation 
of  lovers  and  defenders  of  Rome. 

The  first  great  work  of  the  Jesuits  was  the  establish- 
ment of  religious  schools  for  the  young,  which  were  an 
advance  in  their  methods  on  anything  then  known  to  the 
world.  The  very  ideas  which  prevail  in  the  management  \ 
of  our  best  modern  Sunday-schools,  church  and  mission, 
seem  to  have  been  carried  out  by  the  Jesuits  in  these 
schools  of  their  forming.^  And  it  was  by  this  means  that 
the  Jesuits,  in  a  single  generation,  according  to  the  testi- 
mony of  one  of  their  chief  historians,  becoming  "masters 
of  the  present  by  the  men  whom  they  had  trained,  and 
disposing  of  the  future  by  the  children  who  were  yet  in 
their  hands,  realized  a  dream  which  no  one  till  the  times 

and  in  McClintock   and  Strong's  Cyc.     See,  also,  Porter's  The  Educational 
Systems  of  the  Puritans  and  Jesuits  Compared,  pp.  26-35. 

^  See  Steinmetz's  Hist.  0/ the  Jesuits,  I.,  346-350  ;  Karl  von  Raumer's  Gesch. 
d.  Paedag.,  I.,  288  f. ;  Ranke's  Hist,  of  the  Popes,  I.,  415-418;  and  Quick's 
Essays  on  Educational  Reformers,  pp.  2-20. 


L 


70  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

of  Ignatius  had  dared  to  conceive."^  The  verdict  of  his- 
tory on  this  point  is  summed  up  by  President  Porter,  in 
his  suggestion  that  Cathohc  and  Protestant  historians  are 
agreed  that  it  was  by  this  rehgious  school  machinery  that 
the  Jesuits  "arrested  the  Reformation  in  its  onward  and 
apparently  triumphant  advances,"  and  that  "the  dividing 
line  was  fixed  between  the  Protestant  and  Catholic  sec- 
tions of  Europe,  to  remain  till  now  almost  precisely  where 
it  was  drawn  thirty  years  after  Luther  had  broken  with 
Rome."^  It  was  practically  by  the  Sunday-school  agency 
that  the  Protestant  Reformers  hoped  to  miake  permanent 
the  results  of  the  Reformation.  And  it  was  by  a  more 
adroit  and  efficient  use  of  the  Sunday-school  agency,  in 
its  improved  forms,  that  the  Church  of  Rome  stayed  the 
progress  of  the  Reformation.  TJiat  is  the  plain  lesson 
of  history. 

Nor  has  the  Church  of  Rome  ever  forgotten  the  lesson 
learned  in  that  crisis  hour  of  her  history.  The  Council 
of  Trent  recognized  the  peril  of  the  Church  of  Rome 
through  the  Protestant  use  of  catechetical  teaching,  and 
it  gave  chief  prominence  to  wisely  planned  efforts  at  meet- 
ing that  peril.  "  The  heretics  have  chiefly  made  use  of 
catechisms  to  corrupt  the  minds  of  Christians,"^  was  the 
declaration  of  that  Council.  Therefore  "the  Holy  Synod 
rightly  decreed  that  both  [the]  pestilent  preaching  and  the 
writings  ofthe  false  prophets  must  be  met  by  opposition;"* 
and  felt  it  "  necessary,  even  after  so  many  written  treatises 

1  Cr^tineau  Joly's  Histoire  Religicuse,  Politique,  ct  Littcraire  de  la  Com- 
pagnie  de  Jesus,  I.,  5  ;  cited  by  Porter,  in  Educ.  Systems,  p.  23  f. 
2  Porter's  Educ.  Systems,  p.  4. 
3  Preface  to  The  Catechism  ofthe  Council  of  Trent,  Question  vi. 
*  Ibid.,  Q.  vii. 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  J I 

of  Christian  doctrine,  to  put  forward  a  new  catechism  for 
pastors,  by  the  care  of  an  CEcumenical  Council,  and  the 
authority  of  the  Sovereign  Pontiff."*  All  pastors  were 
specifically  charged  by  the  Council  of  Trent  with  the  duty 
of  instructing  the  young  in  the  primary  elements  of  the 
Christian  faith.^  And  from  that  day  to  this  the  Church 
of  Rome  has  never,  as  before,  neglected  the  divinely 
appointed  agency  of  Christ's  Church  for  discipling  and 
training  the  young ;  nor  has  it,  since  then,  given  a  second 
place  to  children  in  the  ministrations  of  its  priesthood. 

It  was  in  consequence  of  this  lesson  that  St.  Francis 
Xavier  (who  is  credited  wath  the  saying,  "  Give  me  the 
children  until  they  are  seven  years  old,  and  any  one  may 
take  them  afterwards  ")  gave  the  young  and  the  ignorant 
the  first  place  in  his  evangelizing  in  India ;  going  through 
the  streets  of  Goa  ringing  a  bell,  and  entreating  parents 
and  householders  to  send  their  children  and  their  slaves 
to  him  to  be  instructed.'^  It  was  in  consequence  of  this 
lesson  that  St.  Carlo  Borromeo  devoted  his  energies  so 
largely  to  the  gathering  and  teaching  of  children  in  Sun- 
day-schools in  his  cathedral  at  Milan,  and  in  his  parish 
churches  near  and  far;  leaving  at  his  death,  in  1584, 
seven  hundred  and  forty-three  of  these  Sunday-schools, 
comprising  more  than  three  thousand  teachers  and  forty 
thousand  scholars."*  It  was  in  consequence  of  this  lesson 
that  Cardinal  Bellarmine,  while  Archbishop  of  Capua,  a 
little  later  than  Borromeo's  time,  aroused  himself  to  the 
determination  of  securing  elementary  religious  instruction 

'  Preface  to  The  Catechism  of  the  Council  of  Trent,  Question  viii. 
»  Ibid.,  Q.  xi. 
'  See  Methode  de  Saint- Sulpice,  dans  la  Direction  des  Catechismes,  pp.  1-12. 

*  Ibid. 


72  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

to  every  child  in  his  arch-diocese,  he  setting  an  example 
to  his  under  pastors  by  going  personally  into  the  parishes, 
and  gathering  about  him  the  children  and  their  friends 
for  their  familiar  teaching ;  preparing  meanwhile,  as  an 
aid  in  this  work,  simple  catechisms,^  one  at  least  of  which 
is  an  approved  text-book  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Sunday- 
schools  of  England  and  the  United  States  to-day.^  It  is 
in  consequence  of  this  lesson  that  the  policy  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church,  far  more  than  that  of  the  Protestant 
churches,  has  from  that  time  to  this  been  in  the  direction 
indicated  by  these  labors  of  Loyola  and  Xavier  and  Bor- 
romeo  and  Bcllarmine. 

This  policy  it  is  that  was  illustrated  by  the  recorded 
conversation  of  a  Roman  Catholic  priest  with  one  of  our 
Protestant  Episcopal  bishops  in  the  United  States,  some 
years  ago,  when  the  priest  said  to  the  bishop,  in  sub- 
stance :  "  What  a  poor,  foolish  people  are  you  Protestants ! 
You  leave  the  children,  until  they  are  grown  up,  pos- 
sessed of  the  devil ;  then  you  go  at  the  work  of  reclaiming 
them  with  horse,  foot,  and  dragoons.  We  Catholics,  on 
the  other  hand,  know  that  the  children  are  plastic  as  clay 
in  our  hands,  and  we  quietly  devote  ourselves  first  to 
them.  When  they  are  well  instructed  and  trained,  we 
have  little  fear  as  to  their  future."  And  this  policy  of 
the  Church  of  Rome,  resulting  as  it  did  from  this  lesson 
in  the  history  of  that  Church,  has  been  recognized  by 
many  a  wise  Protestant  scholar  and  thinker — all  along 
these  last  three  centuries — as  worthy  of  more  extensive 

1  See  Alethode  de  Saint-Sulpice,  dans  la  Direction  des  Catechism.es,  pp.  1-12. 

2  "  In  1870,  the  Ecumenical  Council  recommended  the  general  use  of  the 
Schema  de  Parvo,  a  small  catechism,  which  is  little  more  than  an  abstract  of 
Bellarmine's  "  (art.  "  Catechism,"  in  Encyc.  Brit.). 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  y^ 

imitation  by  all  lovers  of  God's  truth,  and  all  lovers  of 
divinely  indicated  methods  of  working.' 

Bishop  Lancelot  Andrewes,  of  the  Church  of  England, 
for  example,  learned  as  he  was  in  the  Bible  text  and  in 
ecclesiastical  antiquities,  writing  on  this  subject  within  a 
century  after  the  Reformation,  pointed  back  to  the  teach- 
ings of  Scripture  and  of  Christian  history  in  proof  of  the 
fact  that  interlocutory  religious  teaching  was  the  hope,  as 
it  was  the  duty,  of  the  Christian  Church.  It  was  by  this 
means,  he  said,  that  Christianity  made  all  its  earlier  con- 
quests; "and  when  catechising  was  left  off  in  the  Church,- 
it  [the  Church]  soon  became  darkened  and  overspread 
with  ignorance.  The  Papists,  therefore,  acknowledge  that 
all  the  advantage  which  the  Protestants  have  gotten  of 
them  [since  the  Reformation],  hath  come  by  this  exer- 
cise [of  catechetical  instruction]  ;  and  it  is  to  be  feared 
that  if  ever  they  get  ground  of  us,  it  will  be  by  their  more 
exact  and  frequent  catechising  than  ours."^  A  century 
and  a  half  later,  these  words  of  Bishop  Andrewes  seemed 
like  fulfilled  prophecy. 

It  is  not  that  the  various  Protestant  churches  did  not, 
at  the  time  of  the  Reformation,  realize  the  importance  of 
the  Sunday-school  idea ;  nor  yet  that  they  did  not  form 
plans  for  the  prosecution  of  certain  phases  of  the  Sunday- 
school  work ;  but  it  is  that  various  causes  combined,  as 
can  be  shown,  to  render  the  formed  plans  insufficient,  or 
ineffective,  for  the  purpose  in  view,  and  finally  to  bring 

1  A  valuable  treatise  on  the  religious  instruction  of  children  by  the  Church, 
from  the  Roman  Catholic  stand-point,  is  the  " Methode  de  Saint- Sulpice,  dans 
la  Direction  des  Catechis/ncs,  as  above  cited.  It  treats  of  the  history,  literature, 
and  methods  of  the  subject,  quite  fully.  Incidentally  it  gives  proof  of  the 
prevalence  of  the  Sunday-school  idea  in  the  schools  which  it  represents. 
*  The  Pattern  of  Catechistical  Doctrine,  p.  8. 


74  THE  SON  DA  V-  SCHO  OL : 

them  into  neglect  All  the  representative  Reformed 
churches  were  explicit,  at  the  start,  in  recognition  of  the 
divinely  ordained  mission  of  the  church-school,  or  Sun- 
day-school. The  views  of  Luther,  on  this  point,  have 
been  already  cited.^  In  the  Heidelberg  Catechism,  where 
the  question  is  asked,  "  What  doth  God  require  in  the 
fourth  commandment?"  the  answer  comes,  "  First,  that 
the  ministry  of  the  gospel  and  the  schools  be  main- 
tained." In  the  Scotch  Book  of  Discipline  there  stands 
the  acknowledgment  that  "  one  of  the  two  ordinary  and 
perpetual  functions  that  travel  in  the  word  is  the  office  of 
the  doctor,  who  may  be  also  called  .  .  .  catccliiscr ;  that 
is,  teacher  of  the  catechism  and  rudiments  of  religion."  ^ 
And  this,  in  fact,  was  the  Protestant  position  generally. 

The  General  Assembly  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  in 
the  first  year  of  its  existence,  provided  that  while  there 
should  be  two  public  services  on  every  Lord's  Day,  the 
first  service  should  include  worship  and  sermonizing,  and 
the  second  should  be  given  to  worship  and  the  cate- 
chising of  the  young  and  ignorant;^  Again,  a  canon  in 
the  Church  of  England,  which  dates  back  to  1603,  and 
which  has  never  been  repealed,  requires  that  "every  par- 
son, vicar,  or  curate,  upon  every  Sunday  or  holy  day, 
before  evening  prayer,  shall,  for  half  an  hour  and  more, 
examine  and  instruct  the  youth  and  ignorant  persons  of 
his  parish  in  the  Ten  Commandments,  the  Articles  of  the 
Belief,  and  in  the  Lord's  Prayer ;  and  shall  diligently  hear, 
instruct,  and  teach  them  the  Catechism  set  forth  in  the 

1  See  p.  67  f. ,  ante. 
*  See  Abridgment  of  the  Acts  of  the  General  Asse7nblies  of  the  Church  of 
Scotland,  p.  76  f. 

3  See  Hetherington's  History  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  p.  55. 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  75 

Book  of  Common  Prayer."^  The  minister  who  fails  of 
attention  to  this  duty  is,  on  his  first  offense,  by  the  pro- 
visions of  this  canon,  to  be  reported  to  his  bishop  and  to 
receive  a  reprimand.  A  second  offense  is  to  subject  him 
to  suspension ;  and  on  the  third  offense  he  is,  if  deemed 
incorrigible,  to  be  excommunicated.  It  would  seem, 
indeed,  as  if  the  Reformers  realized  that  the  hope  of  the 
future  pivoted  on  the  continued  and  faithful  ministry  of  the 
Church  to  the  young  ;  and  yet  that  the  plans  of  the  Reform- 
ers to  secure  the  continuance  of  this  ministry  were  practi- 
cally a  failure.     And  here  is  a  mystery  worth  looking  into. 

A  primary  cause  of  the  decline  of  the  Sunday-school 
work  in  Protestant  churches  generally,  after  the  new 
prominence  given  to  it  by  the  Reformers,  seems  to  rest 
in  the  widespread  perversion  of  the  very  means  designed 
for  its  prosecution.  It  was  in  order  to  promote  inter- 
locutory teaching  that  catechisms,  presenting  truth  in 
the  form  of  question  and  answer,  were  prepared  in  such 
fullness  and  variety  by  Protestant  church  leaders.^  But 
the  use  of  those  catechisms  widely  degenerated  into  a 
perfunctory  service  of  asking  rote  questions  with  the  pur- 
pose of  securing  memorized  rote  answers  in  reply,  apart 
from  any  necessary  interchange  of  thought  or  of  knowl- 
edge between  teacher  and  pupil.  And  thus  it  came  to 
pass  that  catechism  using  stood  in  the  way  of  catechetical 
teaching;  the  stepping-stone  becoming  a  stumbling-block. 

So,  again,  the  sermon,  or  the  homily,  was  brought 
by  the  Reformers  to  its  earlier  place  as  an  adjunct  of 

1  Canon  lix.,  of  1603.  See  Gibson's  Codex  Juris  Ecclesiastlci  Anglicani, 
tit.  xix,  cap.  I,  p.  453. 

2  See  List  of  Catechisms  in  Mitchell's  Catechisms  of  the  Second  Reformation, 
pp.  Ixxxv-xci. 


'j6  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

all  principal  services  of  worship,  as  a  means  of  popu- 
lar instruction  in  religious  truth.  But  the  sermonizing 
being  wholly  separated  from  catechising,  under  the  new 
arrangement,  lost  its  primitive  place  in  a  conference  be- 
tween teacher  and  taught,  and  degenerated  widely  into  a 
continuous  discourse  to  rafssive,  and  often  to  inattentive 
and  unintelligent  hearep^  It  is  so  much  easier,  on  the 
one  hand,  to  preach  than  it  is  to  teach ;  and,  on  the  other 
hand,  to  hear  than  it  is  to  learn ;  it  is  so  much  easier  to 
tell  what  one  knows  or  thinks,  or  what  one  thinks  he 
knows,  than  it  is  to  find  out  another's  spiritual  lack  and 
needs  and  capabilities,  and  to  endeavor  to  supply  them 
wisely, —  that  it  is  hardly  to  be  wondered  at,  however 
much  it  is  to  be  regretted,  that  preaching  (especially 
under  the  pressure  of  the  seeming  needfulness  of  polem- 
ical discourses^)  gradually  overshadowed  teaching  in  the 
work  of  the  ministry  in  Protestant  churches  ;  the  children, 
meanwhile,  having  practically  onb^  a  form  of  religious 
instruction  without  its  power.  /And  thus  it  was  that 
the  teaching  of  the  young  wellnigh  died  out  from  the 
churches  of  Protestantism  through  the  misuse  and  abuse 
of  the  agencies  devised  for  its  promotion. 

All  this  was,  however,  an  evil  of  administration  rather 
than  of  primary  purpose  and  plan  ;  for  it  is  evident  from 
the  records  of  history  that  the  Reformers  had  no  thought 
of  overshadowing  Bible-school  teaching  by  pulpit  preach- 
ing, nor  yet  of  making  the  reciting  and  hearing  of  the 

1  In  the  Church  of  England,  very  soon  after  the  enactment  of  the  Canon  of 
1603,  enjoining  catechising,  controversial  preaching  on  dogmas  usurped  the 
place  of  catechising;  and,  in  1622,  King  James  directed  that  catechising  take 
the  place  of  afternoon  sermons.  Archbishop  Laud  again  enforced  catechising 
instead  of  sermonizing  on  Sunday  afternoons.  (See  Perry's  History  of  the 
Church  of  England,  pp.  398,  415). 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  77 

catechism  a  chief  element  in  catechetical  teaching.  The 
catechism  was,  in  every  instance,  prepared,  not  as  the 
lesson  itself,  but  as  a  lesson-analysis,  a  lesson-guide,  a 
lesson-paper,  duly  authorized,  for  the  time  being,  by  a 
Church  Lesson-Committee.  It  outlined  the  subject  of 
study,  but  it  was  not  designed  to  be  the  object  of  study. 
No  prominent  compiler  of  a  catechism  in  the  realm  of 
religious  truth,  from  the  days  of  Philo  Judaeus  to  the 
Westminster  Divines,  can,  in  fact,  have  supposed  that  his 
work  would  be  followed  in  the  blind  and  mechanical 
fashion  which  subsequently  prevailed  so  widely  for  the 
making  of  catechism  teaching  a  thing  of  dread  to  the 
child,  and  of  unconcern  to  the  teacher.^ 

Luther  made  himself  clear  on  this  point.  Li  his  Pref- 
ace to  his  Smaller  Catechism  he  enjoined  it  upon  teachers 
to  see  to  it  that  their  scholars  not  only  knew  what  was 
said  in  the  catechism  answers,  but  knew  what  was  meant 
by  them ;  "  to  take  these  forms  [of  statement]  before 
them,  and  explain  them  word  by  word."^  And  as  show- 
ing that  these  answers,  even  when  thus  explained  and 
understood,  were  in  no  sense  to  be  the  limit  of  the  pupil's 
teaching,  Luther  claimed  that  every  child  under  cate- 
chetical instruction  ought  to  know  the  truths  of  the  entire 
gospel,  the  facts  of  the  whole  life  and  work  of  our  Lord, 
by  the  time  he  was  nine  or  ten  years  of  age.'  "Not  only 
must  they  learn  the  word  [of  God]  by  heart,"  again  he 

*  "  May  we  not  have  just  reason  to  fear,"  said  Dr.  IsaacWatts,  (  Works,  III., 
214,)  in  speaking  of  the  use  of  the  Westminster  Catechism,  "that  the  holy 
things  of  our  rehgion  have  not  only  been  made  the  aversion  of  children,  but 
have  been  exposed  to  disreputation  and  contempt,  by  teaching  them  such  a 
number  of  strange  phrases  which  they  could  not  understand?  " 
2  See  Kostlin's  Life  0/  Luther,  p.  369  f. 
^  See  Karl  von  Raumer's  Gesch.  d.  Paedag.,  I.,  169  f. 


78  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

said,  .  .  .  "but  they  must  be  asked,  verse  by  verse,  and 
must  answer,  what  each  [verse]  means,  and  how  they 
understand  it."'  Luther's  Larger  Catechism  was  not 
even  arranged  in  the  form  of  question  and  answer,  but  it 
was  none  the  less  a  "catechism,"  in  name  and  in  fact, 
for  being  in  the  form  of  the  lesson-guides  of  the  Early 
Church  catechumens. 

Even  before  the  Reformation  there  were  formal  injunc- 
tions in  force  in  the  Church  of  England,  requiring  all 
curates  to  explain  to  their  hearers  every  sentence  of  the 
substance  of  the  primers  which  those  hearers  were  to 
memorize.  Thus,  in  1536-38,  an  injunction  to  the 
curates  ran:  "Ye  shall,  every  Sunday  and  Holy -day 
throughout  the  year,  openly  and  plainly  recite  to  your 
parishioners,  twice  or  thrice  together,  or  oftener  if  need 
require,  one  particle  or  sentence  of  the  Paternoster,  or 
[of  the]  Creed,  in  English,  to  the  intent  [that]  they  may 
learn  the  same  by  heart :  and  so  from  day  to  day  [ye  are] 
to  give  them  one  little  lesson  or  sentence  of  the  same,  till 
they  have  learned  the  whole  Paternoster  and  Creed  in 
English  by  rote.  And  as  they  be  taught  every  sentence 
of  the  same  by  rote,  yc  shall  expound  and  declare  the  un- 
derstanding of  the  same  unto  tJiemr  ^ 

And  when  a  "Catechism  for  Children"  was  given  its 
place  in  the  Prayer  Book  of  Edward  VI. ,^  that  catechism 

1  Luther's  Deutsche  Messe  {\^-2(i) ;  cited  in  Gieseler's  Eccles.  Hist.,  IV.,  562. 

*  Quoted  from  Burnet's  History  of  the  Reformation,  in  Procter's  History  of 
the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  Y>.  2,90.  Comp.  Burnet's  Hist,  of  the  Ref.,\., 
364.  507- 

*  "  When  the  great  hindrance  to  reformation  was  removed  by  the  death  of 
Henry,  the  instruction  of  the  young  and  the  ignorant  was  among  the  first  par- 
ticulars to  which  the  advisers  of  Edward  directed  their  efforts,  in  the  Injunc- 
tions of  1547;  and  as  soon  as  a  Book  of  Service  was  prepared,  a  Catechism 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  79 

was  by  no  means  understood  as  covering  the  substance 
of  a  Christian  child's  rcHgious  instruction.  On  the  con- 
trary, it  merely  co\'ered  the  points  at  which  the  child  was 
to  be  examined  by  the  bishop,  when  brought  to  him  for 
confirmation.^  Various  other  catechisms  were  in  use, 
more  or  less  widely,  in  the  Church  of  England,  in  the 
days  of  Edward  and  of  Elizabeth  ;^  and  in  order  to  secure 
uniformity  in  the  religious  teaching  of  the  young,  the 
Convocation  of  1562  took  steps  for  securing  a  catechism 
that  should  be  the  standard  of  religious  instruction  in  all 
the  schools.^  This  catechism  was  prepared  by  Dean 
Nowell,  of  St.  Paul's,  although  it  made  free  use  of  the 
material  of  earlier  authors,  including  the  work  of  Bishop 
Poynet.*     Delayed  in  its  issue  by  various  causes,  it  was 

was  placed  in  it,  that  the  exposition  of  these  Christian  elements  might  not 
depend  on  the  care  or  ability  of  the  curates  "  (Procter's  Hist,  of  Book  of  Com. 
Prayer,  p.  390). 

1  "  The  end  and  purpose  of  catechism  [of  catechising]  is,  in  good  and  natural 
order,  fitly  applied  to  serve  the  good  use  of  confirmation  by  the  bishop,  at 
which  time  the  bishop  doth  not  teach  but  examine  "  (Thomas  Norton  in  his 
Preface  to  the  English  translation  of  Nowell's  Catechism,  in  1570.  See  Parker 
Society's  edition  oi  Nowell' s  Catechism,  p.  109). 

2  See  Procter's  Hist,  of  Book  of  Com.  Prayer  (p.  392),  with  citation  from 
Cardwell's  Documentary  Annals. 

5  "  One  considerable  thing  more  passed  the  hands  of  this  Convocation 
[1562]  ;  .  .  .  viz.,  the  Catechism  in  Latin  for  the  use  of  schools,  and  also  for 
a  brief  summary  of  religion  to  be  owned  and  professed  in  this  reformed 
Church.  And  this  is  the  same  with  that  which  is  commonly  known  to  this 
day  by  the  name  of  Nowell's  Catechism  "  (Strype's  Annals  of  the  Reforma- 
tion, Vol.  I.,  pt.  i.,  p.  525  f.). 

*  "  An  intention  was  formed  in  the  time  of  Edward  and  Elizabeth,  to  have 
another  authorized  Catechism  [besides  that  in  the  Prayer  Book]  for  the  instruc- 
tion of  more  advanced  students,  and  especially  those  in  public  schools.  .  .  . 
Tlie  original  of  this  work  is  ascribed  to  Poynet,  who  was  Bishop  of  Win- 
chester during  Gardiner's  deprivation.  It  was  published  in  Latin  and  in 
English  in  1553,  and  is  supposed  to  have  had  the  approval  both  of  Cranmer 


8o  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

finally  issued  in  1570.  Originally  written  in  Latin,  it  was 
translated  into  English  and  Greek  ;  ^  and  several  abridg- 
ments or  condensations  of  it  were  made.  While  entitled 
Catechisvms  Piicj-orinn  ("Children's  Catechism")^  it  was 
specifically  designed  "  to  be  a  guide  to  the  younger  clergy 
in  the  study  of  divinity,  as  containing  the  sum  and  sub- 
stance of  our  reformed  religion."^  In  other  words  it  was, 
like  every  other  true  catechism,  an  indication  of  the  lines 
along  which  the  clergyman  or  schoolmaster  should  teach 
the  children  and  youth  of  his  charge.  In  1571  a  canon 
enjoined  the  exclusive  use  of  Nowell's  Catechism — in  one 
or  another  of  its  forms — in  the  work  of  relig'ious  instruc- 


and  also  of  the  Convocation  which  sanctioned  the  Articles  in  1552  "  (Procter's 
Hist,  of  Book  of  Com.  Prayer,  p.  391  f.).  Comp.  Strype's  Memorials  of  Abp. 
Cranmer,  p.  294.  "  Novvell  informs  the  Bishops  that  he  had  not  scrupled  to 
avail  himself  of  the  labors  of  others  who  had  preceded  him  in  this  department 
of  theology,  both  as  regarded  arrangement  and  matter.  .  .  .  The  Catechisms 
of  Poinet  and  Calvin  are,  perhaps,  those  with  which  Nowell's  is  most  fre- 
quently and  verbally  coincident  "  (Corrie's  Memoir  of  Nowell,  in  Parker  So- 
ciety's edition  of  NoiueW s  Catechism,  p.  vii).  In  drawing  up  his  catechism, 
Nowell  "  made  much  use  of  the  Catechism  set  forth  toward  the  latter  end  of 
King  Edward's  reign  "  (Strype's  Annals  of  the  Ref.,  Vol.  I.,  pt.  i.,  p.  525  f.). 

^  See  Strype's  Annals  of  the  Rcf.,  Vol.  I.,  pt.  i.,  p.  525  f  ;  Corrie's  Memoir 
of  Nowell,  in  Parker  Soc.  ed.  of  Nowell' s  Catechism,  p.  vii ;  Procter's  Hist, 
of  Book  of  Com.  Prayer,  p.  393. 

2  Corrie  (Memoir,  as  above,  pp.  v,  vi)  shows  that  the  Catechismus  Piie- 
rorum  approved  by  this  lower  house  of  Convocation  March  3,  1562,  was  the 
same  as  that  published  by  Nowell  in  1570. 

3  "  Besides  this  [Prayer  Book  Catechism],  there  was  a  Catechism  set  forth 
by  Edward  VI.,  that  is  often  mentioned  in  our  accounts  of  the  Reformation; 
which  King  Edward,  by  his  letters  patent,  commanded  to  be  taught  in  all 
schools,  and  which  was  examined,  reviewed  and  corrected,  in  the  Convocation 
of  1562,  and  published  with  these  improvements  in  1570,  to  be  a  guide  to  the 
younger  clergy  in  the  study  of  divinity,  as  containing  the  sum  and  substance 
of  our  reformed  religion  "  (Gibson's  Codex  Juris  Ecclesiastici  Anglicani, 
tit.  xix.,  cap.  i). 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  8 1 

tion  by  clergymen  or  schoolmasters ;  ^  and  its  use  in  this 
way  was  continued  for  years.-  In  incidental  proof  that 
catechising  was  understood  to  require  more  ability  than 
is  involved  in  merely  hearing  the  catechism  recited,  an 
order  of  Convocation  of  1588  is  to  the  effect  that  "no 
unlearned  unable  person  to  catechise  shall  be  admitted  to 
any  cure;"  that  is,  no  person  so  unlearned  as  to  be  unable 
to  teach  the  truths  outlined  in  the  catechism,  shall  have  a 
place  of  curate.^ 

The  recently  published  discussions  of  the  Westminster 
Assembly  of  Divines  over  the  form  of  the  Shorter  Cate- 
chism issued  by  that  body,  show  that  the  idea  of  having 
the  answers  in  that  lesson-help  blindly  memorized  by 
children  was  not  in  the  minds  of  its  framers,  save  as  an 
evil  to  be  guarded  against  religiously.  Some  of  the  more 
prominent  divines,  including  Palmer,  who  was  called 
"the  best  catechist  in  England,"  and  who  presided  over 
the  Assembly's  Committee  on  the  Catechisms  until  his 
death,*  desired  to  insert  a  series  of  minor,  or  subordinate, 
questions  and  answ^ers  with  each  principal  question  and 
answer,  as  a  means  of  making  the  meaning  of  that  main 
answer  clear  to  the  common  mind.^     The  objection  made 

1  See  Cardwell's  Synodalla,  I.,  128. 
2  "  This  Catechism  [of  Nowell's]  was  printed  again  [after  1570]  in  the  year 
1572 ;  and  in  Greek  and  Latin  in  1573  ;  and  so  from  time  to  time  had  many 
impressions  ;  and  it  was  used  a  long  time  in  all  schools  even  to  our  days ;  and 
pity  it  is,  it  is  now  so  disused  "  (Strype's  Life  of  Abp.  Parker,  p.  301). 
^  Cardwell's  Synodalia,  II.,  572. 
*See  Biographical  Sketch  of  the  Rev.  Herbert   Palmer,  in  Mitchell's  Cate- 
chisms of  the  Second  Reformation,  pp.  li-liii ;  also  p.  x.     See,  also,  Hethering- 
ton's  History  of  the  Westminster  Assembly,  p.  259. 

*  See  Palmer's  Endeavor,  etc.,  in  Mitchell's  Catechisms,  as  above,  pp.  93-118. 
See,  also.  Dr.  Briggs's  article  "  Tlie  Westminster  Assembly,"  in  The  Presby- 
terian Review,  for  January,  1880,  pp.   155-162 ;  Mitchell's  The  Westminster 

6 


82  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

to  this  plan  was  not  that  the  main  answer  was  in  itself 
sufficiently  simple  and  clear,  but  that  if  the  necessary- 
helps  to  its  simplifying  were  given  in  set  form,  this  might 
lead  to  an  undue  dependence  on  them,  and  so  to  the 
neglect  of  the  essential  interlocutory  process  of  teaching, 
which  every  teacher  must  choose  for  himself  according 
to  the  requirements  of  his  particular  scholar.  The  fear 
was  that  the  catechism  lesson-outline  might  thus  come 
to  be  deemed  self-explanatory,  and  its  answers  memorized 
just  as  they  stood ;  and  so,  as  one  of  the  divines  expressed 
it,  these  misguided  "  people  will  come  to  learn  things 
by  rote,  and  can  answer  as  a  parrot,  but  not  understand 
the  thing."  ^ 

Assembly,  pp.  407-441 ;  and  Minutes  of  the  Sessions  of  the  Westminster  Assem- 
bly, pp.  91-94. 

iSee  Minutes  of  the  Sessions  of  the  Westminster  Assembly,  pp.  91-94; 
also  Mitchell's  The  Westminster  Assembly,  pp.  409-420.  In  advocating  the 
introduction  of  minor  explanatory  questions  as  a  help  to  the  understand- 
ing of  the  answers  to  the  main  questions  in  the  Catechism,  Rutherford  said: 
"  [It  is]  said  [that]  the  Apostles  did  not  use  such  a  way.  I  think  they  did 
use  it."  As  to  the  proper  method  of  catechising,  he  said:  "  It  should 
be  in  the  plainest  and  easiest  way.  It  is  a  feeding  of  the  lambs."  And  in 
enforcement  of  his  claim  that  the  Catechism  could  not  explain  itself,  he  added : 
"  There  is  as  much  art  in  catechising  as  in  anything  in  the  world.  It  may  be 
doubted  whether  every  minister  do  understand  the  most  dexterous  way  of 
doing  it."  What  would  Rutherford  have  said  to  the  modern  claim,  that  for  a 
teacher  or  parent  to  hear  a  child  repeat  the  main  answers  to  the  Westminster 
Catechism,  is  to  teach  the  Catechism  !  Seaman,  also,  insisted  that  while  "  the 
greatest  care  should  be  taken  for  the  answer ' '  to  every  question  in  the  Cate- 
chism, in  order  to  have  it  present  truth  accurately,  yet  that  answer  was  "to 
be  formed  not  to  the  model  of  knowledge  that  the  child  hath,  but  to  that 
[which]  the  child  ought  to  have."  In  other  words,  each  Catechism  answer 
was  designed  to  define  a  truth  to  which  the  child  was  to  be  led  up  by  wise 
teaching,  not  to  present  a  statement  of  truth  which  the  child  should  repeat 
unintelligently.  Mr.  Delmy  opposed  any  set  form  of  simple  explanatory 
questions,  because  the  catechiser  needed  "  to  inquire  into  the  measure  of 
the  knowledge  of  the  party  "  catechised,  and  to  frame  his  own  questions 
accordingly. 


ITS  VARYING  PROiiRESS.  83 

The  opinion  of  the  Westminster  Assembly  on  the  point 
ofabhndand  unintelligent  menn)rizing- of  the  answers 
to  its  cateehism  by  children,  was  expressed  by  Gillespie, 
when  he  said,  in  the  discussion  ov^er  its  framing:  "It 
never  entered  into  the  thoughts  of  any  to  tie  to  the 
words  and  syllables  in  that  catechism."  ^  As  to  the  neces- 
sity of  a  free  interlocutory  method  in  the  teaching  of 
truth,  his  conclusion  was  that  which  is  the  conclusion  of 
the  best  teachers  of  the  ages ;  namely,  that  "  the  light 
of  nature  and  natural  reason  leads  men  this  way  in  the 
explanation  of  things."^  It  would  seem,  in  short,  that 
the  very  method  of  "learning"  the  Westminster  Cate- 
chism, which  has  been  more  common  than  any  other 
in  the  last  two  centuries,  and  which  even  has  many 
advocates  and  admirers  to-day,  is  a  method  which  the 
Westminster  Divines  themselves  stigmatized  as  "parrot" 
learning,  and  as  contrary  to  "  the  light  of  nature  and 
natural  reason."^ 

1  Minute!:  of  the  Sessions  of  the  IVestminster  Assembly,  p.  93. 

2  3iJ. 

3  If  there  is  one  fundamental  principle  in  the  teaching  process,  on  which 
all  modern  masters  in  the  theory  and  art  of  teaching  are  agreed,  it  is  that  the 
true  order  of  learning  involves  a  knowledge  of  the  thought  or  thing  as  prece- 
dent, in  the  child's  mind,  to  the  memorizing  of  the  words  which  express  that 
thought,  or  which  declare  that  thing.  Roger  Aseham,  earliest  of  great  Eng- 
lish teachers,  protested  against  the  method  of  blind  memorizing,  by  which  the 
learners'  knowledge  "  was  tied  only  to  their  tong  and  lips  and  neuer  ascended 
vp  to  the  braine  and  head,  and  therefore  was  sone  spitte  out  of  the  mouth 
againe  "  (  The  Scholemaster,  p.  88).  Comenius,  whose  pioneer  teaching  work 
was  hardly  less  prominent  on  the  continent  of  Europe  than  was  Aseham 's  in 
England,  was  equally  positive  on  this  point.  "  In  teaching,"  he  said,  "  let  the 
inmost  part,  i.  e.,  the  understanding  of  the  subject,  come  first ;  then  let  the 
thing  understood  be  used  to  exercise  the  memory"  (cited  in  Quick's  Essays 
on  Educational  Reformers,  p.  57).  John  Locke  showed  his  wisdom  in  a  like 
declaration  :    "I  hear  'tis  said,"  he  wrote,  "  that  children  should  be  employed 


84  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

The  more  eminent  contemporaries  and  immediate 
successors  of  the  Westminster  Divines  were  at  one  with 
them  in  holding  that  true  catechising  is  a  very  different 
matter  from  adhering  to  the  mere  letter  of  the  catechism. 
Richard  Baxter,  in  his  "Reformed  Pastor"  and  other 
works,  pressed  the  importance  and  explained  the  methods 
of  catechising;  which  he  deemed  the  divinely  approved 
plan  of  discipling  those  whom  Christ's  ministers  can  reach.' 
He  insisted  that  catechising  is  a  more  difficult,  as  it  is  a 
more  important,  work  than  sermonizing ;  and  he  cited 
Archbishop  Usher's  opinion  to  the  same  effect.^  Baxter's 
illustrations  of  catechising  along  the  lines  of  the  West- 
minster Catechism,  and  of  simpler  catechisms  than  this,^ 
consist  of  the  simplest  inter-colloquial  as  well  as  inter- 
in  getting  things  by  heart,  to  exercise  and  improve  their  memories.  I  could 
wish  this  were  said  with  as  much  authority  of  reason  as  it  is  with  forwardness 
of  assurance,  and  that  this  practice  were  established  upon  good  observation 
more  than  old  custom."  Of  the  use  of  the  memory,  he  added:  "  Charging 
it  with  a  train  of  other  people's  words,  which  he  that  learns  cares  not  for,  will, 
I  guess,  scarce  find  the  profit  answer  half  the  time  and  pains  employed  in 
it"  ("Thoughts  Concerning  Education,"  in  Locke's  Works,  III.,  80  f.). 
Pestalozzi,  the  father  of  modern  education  in  Europe,  was  emphatic  and  un- 
qualified in  his  assertion  that  "nothing  should  be  learned  by  rote  without 
being  understood"  (See  Barnard's  Pestalozzi  and  Pestalozzianism,  p.  25). 
"Words  which  are  the  signs  of  things,"  he  said,  "must  never  be  taught  the 
child  till  he  has  grasped  the  idea  of  the  thing  signified"  (Quick's  Essays,  p. 
190).  And  so  it  has  been  held  by  all  our  later  students  of  the  theory  and 
practice  of  teaching.  As  Dr.  John  S.  Hart  has  expressed  it :  "  This  is  the 
true  mental  order.  Knowledge  first,  then  memory.  Get  knowledge  ;  then 
keep  it.  Any  other  plan  is  like  attempting  to  become  rich  by  inflating  your 
bags  with  wind  instead  of  gold  ;  or,  attempting  to  grow  fat  by  bolting  food  in 
a  form  which  you  cannot  digest  "  {In  the  Scliool-Rooni,  p.  58). 

J  "  The  Reformed  Pastor,"  in  Practical  Works,  XIV.,  246-354. 
2  Ibid.,  p.  318. 
'  Baxter  prepared  at  least  three  elementary  catechisms,  after  the  publication 
of  the  Westminster  Catechism  (see  his  Practical  Works,  Vols.  XVIII.,  XIX.). 


i 


/7:S-  VARVIXG  PROGRESS.  85 

locutory  instruction  in  the  truths  of  the  catechism,  as 
adapted  to  the  needs  of  the  particular  jDupil  in  hand.^ 

Dr.  Isaac  Watts  was  an  enthusiast  in  the  work  of  teach- 
ing children  catechetically,  and  a  radical  in  his  hostility 
to  the  unintelligent  memorizing  of  the  Westminster  Cate- 
chism by  children.  "  The  business  and  duty  of  the  teacher 
[of  children],"  he  said,  "is  not  merely  to  teach  them 
words,  but  [to  teach  them]  things.  Words  written  on 
the  memory  without  ideas  or  sense  in  the  mind,  will 
never  incline  a  child  to  his  duty,  nor  save  his  soul.  The 
young  creature  will  neither  be  the  wiser  nor  the  better 
for  being  able  to  repeat  accurate  definitions  and  theorems 
in  divinity  without  knowing  what  they  mean."^    In  rebut- 

1  Practical  Works,  XIV.,  316-322.  "  Why  is  not  catechising  more  used  by- 
pastors  and  jiarcnts  ?  "  asks  Ba.xter  {idid.,  XV.,  76).  And  then  he  adds  by  way 
of  explanation  :  "  I  mean  not  the  bare  words  unexplained  without  the  sense, 
nor  the  sense  in  a  mere  rambling  way  without  a  form  of  words  ;  but  the  words 
explained."  Of  the  difficulties  of  wise  catechising  he  says  :  "  I  must  say  that 
I  think  it  an  easier  matter  by  far  to  compose  and  preach  a  good  sermon,  than 
to  deal  rightly  with  an  ignorant  man  [by  the  interlocutory  method  of  teaching] 
for  his  instruction  in  the  necessary  principles  of  religion  "  {ibid.,  XIV.,  318). 
Giving  illustrations  of  questioning  as  a  test  of  the  learner's  knowledge,  in  the 
study  of  catechism  truths,  Baxter  says  :  "  So  contrive  your  question  that  they 
may  perceive  what  you  mean,  and  that  it  is  not  a  nice  definition,  but  a  neces- 
sary solution,  that  you  expect.  Look  not  after  words,  but  things,  and  there 
[thereto]  leave  them  [if  you  can  do  no  better]  to  a  bare  yea  or  nay,  or  the 
mere  election  of  one  of  the  two  descriptions  which  you  yourself  shall  pro- 
pound" (i^/(/.,  XIV.,322).     Comp.,also,  z/5/'</.,  II.,  99  ;  V.,53of. ;  XIX.,  4, 12. 

2  Works,  III.,  208.  Watts  claimed  that  the  Westminster  Assembly  did  not 
design  the  Shorter  Catechism  for  blind  memorizing  by  young  children,  but 
prepared  it  as  an  outline  of  doctrine  by  which  teachers  should  be  guided  in 
their  work  of  instruction.  "  The  Assembly's  Larger  Catechism,"  as  he  said, 
"  was  not  composed  for  children,  but  for  men  ;  to  give  them  a  large  and  full 
view  of  all  the  parts  of  our  holy  religion.  The  Shorter  Catechism  is  but  an 
abridgement  of  the  Larger.  ...  A  multitude  of  the  same  Latinized  ,.iid 
theological  terms  are  used  in  it  as  in  the  Larger"  {ibid.,  III.,  210).  He  re- 
marked that  more  than  twenty  persons  "who  had  a  most  high  esteem  for  the 


86  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

tal  of  the  even  then  common  suggestion  that  there  is  a 
possible  gain  to  children  in  the  unintelligent  memorizing 
of  statements  of  doctrine  which  it  may  be  they  will  live 
to  know  the  meaning  of,  Dr.  Watts  said,  pithily :  "  Words 
are  but  as  the  husks  of  this  divine  food,  whereby  the 
souls  of  children  must  be  nourished  to  everlasting  life. 
Though  the  food  is  divine,  it  is  possible  the  husk  may  be 
too  hard  for  them  to  open.^  Is  it  the  best  method  for 
feeding  and  nourishing  the  bodies  of  young  children,  to 
bestow  upon  them  [uncracked]  nuts  and  almonds,  in 
hope  that  they  will  taste  the  sweetness  of  them  when 
their  teeth  are  strong  enough  to  break  the  shell  ?  Will 
they  not  be  far  better  nourished  by  children's  bread,  and 
by  food  which  they  can  immediately  taste  and  relish?"^ 
This  thought  of  Dr.  Watts  suggests  the  telling  title  of 
Dr.  Bushnell's  sermon  on  a  kindred  theme:  "God's 
thoughts  fit  bread  for  children." 

Even  those  simpler  forms  of  catechism  which  Dr.  Watts 

Assembly's  [Shorter]  Catechism,  and  a  great  and  just  veneration  for  it,"  had 
already,  before  himself,  prepared  elementary  catechisms  designed  to  precede 
the  use  of  the  Assembly's.  One  of  these  writers  he  quoted,  as  saying: 
"  When  the  venerable  Assembly  composed  this  form  of  instruction,  it  seems 
that  few  of  themselves  thought  it  designed  or  fitted  for  babes "  {ibid..  III., 
21 1).  Watts  argued,  as  modern  educators  would  argue,  that  to  cause  a  child 
to  memorize  the  Catechism  without  understanding  it,  is  to  raise  in  that  child's 
mind  an  added  barrier  to  his  subsequent  understanding  of  the  Catechism ; 
hence  "  whatever  catechisms  are  impressed  on  the  memories  of  children  in 
their  most  tender  years,  they  [the  children]  should  be  taught  the  meaning 
of  them,  as  far  as  possible,  as  fast  as  they  learn  them  by  heart"  {ibid., 
III.,  215). 

i"I  have  been  informed,"  says  Watts,  {ibid..  III.,  249,)  "of  one  child 
who  was  asked  what  the  chief  end  of  man  was,  and  he  answered,  '  His  head ; ' 
another  being  asked  the  same  question  answered  '  Death  ; '  neither  of  them 
taking  in  the  true  idea  or  meaning  of  the  words." 
2  Ibid..  IIT.,  211  f. 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  8/ 

himself  prepared  as  lesson-helps  for  children  were  not 
designed  by  him  for  the  children's  blind  memorizing.  In 
using  one  of  these,  as  in  using  the  larger  ones,  "parents 
and  teachers  should  use  their  utmost  skill,"  he  said,  "  in 
leading  the  child  into  the  meaning  of  every  question, 
when  they  ask  it,  and  of  every  answer  when  the  child 
repeats  it,  that  the  child  may  not  hear  and  learn  mere 
W'ords  and  syllables  instead  of  the  great  things  of  God 
and  religion."  And  this  seems  to  have  been  the  pur- 
pose of  all  catechism  makers  of  two  and  three  centuries 
ago.  The  catechisms  were  intended  as  guides  in  Bible- 
study,  not  as  substitutes  for  it,  in  the  religious  instruction 
of  children.^  It  was  by  the  perversion  of  this  agency  that 
the  help  became  a  hindrance,  and  that  the  hopes  of  the 
Reformers  and  their  earliest  successors  for  a  permanent 
re -establishment  of  the  primitive  Bible -school  agency 
were  frustrated. 

In  America  it  was  much  the  same  as  it  was  in  Europe. 
The  founders  of  New  England  had  no  thought  of  building] 
up  a  Christian  commonwealth  without  the  Bible-school 
training  agency.  But  as  they  looked  upon  the  Church  I 
and  the  State  as  having  a  common  oversight  of  this  work, 
and  upon  the  work  itself  as  covering  seven  days  in  the 
week,  their  week-day  schools  were  their  Bible-schools, 
according  to  the  ancient  Jewish  theory.    Quite  naturally, 

1  Principal  Currie,  while  at  the  head  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  Training 
College,  Edinburgh,  expressed  himself  emphatically  on  this  point.  Writing 
of  the  manner  and  method  of  religious  instruction  for  young  children,  he  said 
{Early  and  Infant  School-Educatiori,  p.  136) :  "  An  abstract  style  of  teaching 
is  unsuitable,  however  clear  our  proofs  or  simple  our  phraseology.  The 
'  Catechism  '  is  the  exponent  of  this  style  of  teaching,  and  can  never,  therefore, 
be  the  vehicle  of  instruction  by  itself.  Its  forms  of  expression  are  mere  words 
to  the  child." 


88  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

therefore,  they  gave  the  whole  of  the  Lord's  Day  to  wor- 
ship and  sermonizing,  upon  the  presupposed  basis  of  a 
Aveek's  catechetical  teaching. 

Nor  did  they  suppose  that  the  memorizing  and  reciting 
of  catechism  answers  was  catechetical  teaching.  John 
Cotton  said,  on  this  point :  "  The  excellent  and  neces- 
sary use  of  catechising  young  men  and  novices  .  .  .  we 
willingly  acknowledge ;  but  little  benefit  have  we  seen 
reaped  from  set  forms  of  questions  and  answers  devised 
by  one  church,  and  imposed  by  necessity  on  another."^ 
Cotton  Mather,  also,  urged  that  the  aim  of  catechetical 
teaching  was  an  understanding  of  Bible  truth.  In  an 
appeal  to  his  brother  ministers,  in  the  dedication  of  his 
"  Maschil,  or,  The  Faithful  Instructor,"  he  emphasized  the 
uselessness  of  attempting  to  train  the  young  and  ignorant 
by  "  well-composed  sermons;"  "whereas,"  he  said,  "if 
you  will  be  at  the  pains  (and  can  any  pains  be  too  much 
for  the  precious  and  immortal  souls  of  your  neighbors, 
O  ye  that  have  the  care  of  souls  ?)  to  instruct  them  in  the 
interlocutory  way  of  teaching,  which  we  call  catechising, 
you  have  the  experience  of  all  ages  to  make  you  hope 
that  vast  would  be  the  consequence,  vast  the  advantage."^ 

But  gradually,  in  New  England,  the  week-day  schools 
became  thoroughly  secularized.  Catechetical  teaching 
there,  came  first  to  be  limited  to  a  perfunctory  teaching 
of  the  Westminster  Catechism ;  and  then  to  drop  out 
altogether.  And  in  this  way  it  finally  came  about  that 
where  the  Christian  founders  of  New  England  had  planned 

1  Cited  by  Dr.  J.  Hammond  Trumbull  in  his  article  "  Catechisms  of  Old 
and  New  England,"  in  The  Sunday  School  Times  for  September  8,  1883. 

2  Cited  by  Dr.  J.  Hammond  Trumbull,  in  his  second  article,  as  above,  in 
The  Sunday  School  Times  for  September  15,  1883. 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  89 

for  even  more  of  teaching  than  of  sermonizing,  the  teach- 
ing was  given  up  and  only  the  sermonizing  remained. 
An  untaught  generation  —  untaught  in  any  form  of  the 
divinely  appointed  Bible-school — was  a  sure  result;  and 
the  religious  decline  of  New  England  was  inevitable/ 
Here,  as  elsewhere,  was  illustrated  that  truth  of  ecclesi- 
astical history  which  Bishop  Jebb  as  an  observant  teacher 
recorded,  that  all  through  the  Christian  centuries,  "  in 
exact  proportion  as  catechising  [free  and  familiar  inter- 
locutory teaching,  as  he  explained  it^]  has  been  practised 
or  neglected,  in  the  same  proportion  have  the  public  faith 
and  morals  been  seen  to  flourish  or  decline."^ 

Great  preachers,  also,  as  well  as  great  teachers,  all  the 
way  along  in  the  years  of  progress  and  of  decline  after 
the  Protestant  Reformation,  were  as  emphatic  in  their 
affirmations  of  the  importance  of  interlocutory  teaching, 
as  God's  agency  of  religious  training,  as  they  were  of  any 
other  primitive  Bible  truth  rescued  by  the  Reformation 

1  All  the  lessons  of  history  would  seem  to  show,  that  while  interlocutory 
Bible  teaching  has  tended,  even  under  the  most  unfavorable  circumstances, 
to  preserve  the  religious  vitality  of  the  people  practicing  it,  an  adherence  to 
the  unintelligent  or  parrot  reciting  of  any  set  catechism  has  been  followed  by 
a  departure  from  the  teachings  of  that  catechism  by  the  people  practicing  it. 

2  "  Let  not  the  common  prejudice  be  entertained,  that  catechising  is  a  slight 
and  trifling  exercise,  tobe  performed  without  pains  and  preparation  on  your 
part.  This  would  be  so  if  it  were  the  mere  rote-work  asking  and  answering 
of  the  questions  in  our  Church  Catechism  :  but  to  open,  to  explain,  and  famil- 
iarly to  illustrate  these  questions  in  such  a  manner  as,  at  once,  to  reach  the 
understanding  and  touch  the  affections  of  little  children,  is  a  work  which 
demands  no  ordinary  acquaintance,  at  once,  with  the  whole  scheme  of  Chris- 
tian theology,  with  the  philosophy  of  the  human  mind,  and  with  the  yet  pro- 
founder  mysteries  of  the  human  heart.  It  has,  therefore,  been  well  and  truly 
said,  by  I  recollect  not  what  writer,  that  a  boy  may  preach,  but  to  catechise 
requires  a  man  "   (Jebb's  Pastoral  Instructions,  p.  198). 

3  Ibid.,  p.  196. 


90  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

from  the  oblivion  of  the  Dark  Ages.  It  seems  strange, 
indeed,  as  one  reads  their  testimonies  and  appeals,  that 
they  did  not  have  more  permanent  power  over  the  thought 
and  action  of  the  churches  in  which  these  men  were  rep- 
resentative leaders.  Godly  and  earnest  Bishop  Hall  said, 
toward  the  close  of  his  well-filled  life:^  "  There  is  no  one 
thing  of  which  I  repent  so  much  as  not  to  have  bestowed 
more  hours  in  this  public  exercise  of  catechisme  [of  inter- 
locutory teaching]  ;  in  regard  whereof  I  would  quarrel 
with  my  very  sermons;  and  wish  that  a  great  part  of 
them  had  been  exchanged  for  this  preaching  conference. 
Those  other  divine  discourses  enrich  the  braine  and  the 
tongue;  this  settles  the  heart;  those  others  are  but  the 
descants  to  this  plain  song."^ 

Henry  More,  eminent  as  a  divine,  a  philosopher,  and  a 
preacher,  in  the  Church  of  England,  in  the  days  of  Bishop 
Hall,  and  Archbishop  Usher,  and  Richard  Baxter,  was 
equally  explicit  with  these  other  men  of  God  on  this 
point.  "  Concerning  preaching,"  he  said,'^  "  that  which  is 
most  remarkable  is  this,  that  whereas  there  are  three  chief 
kinds  thereof,  namely,  catechising,  expounding  a  chap- 
ter, and  preaching,  usually  so  called, — whereof  the  first 
[catechising]  is  the  best,  and  the  last  [preaching,  or  ser- 
monizing] is  the  least  considerable  of  them  all, — this  worst 
and  last  is  the  very  idol  of  some  men,  and  the  others 
[are]  rejected  as  things  of  little  worth.  But  assuredly 
they  [the  expounding  of  a  chapter,  and  the  catechising] 
are  of  most  virtue  for  the  effectual  planting  the  gospel 

1  He  died  in  1656.  ^  Cited  in  Jebb's  Pastoral  Instructions,  p.  367  f. 

^In  The  Great  Mystery  of  Godliness  (1660),  p.  37  f. ;  citedby  Dr.  J.  Hammond 
Trumbull,  in  his  article,  as  above,  in  The  Sunday  School  Times  for  September 

15.  1883. 


ITS  VARYING   PROGRESS.  9 1 

ill  the  minds  of  men ;  and  of  the  two,  as  I  said,  cate- 
chising is  the  better  because  it  enforceth  the  catechised 
to  take  notice  of  what  is  taught  him ;  and  what  is  taught 
him  is  not  so  voluminous  but  that  he  can  carry  it  away 
and  remember  it  forever." 

George  Herbert,  model  Christian  pastor  as  he  was,  put 
this  truth  sententiously  when  he  said,  in  his  "  Country 
Parson :  "  "  At  sermons  and  at  prayers  men  may  sleep 
or  wander,  but  when  one  is  asked  a  question,  he  must 
disclose  what  he  is."  ^  And  sturdy  John  Owen  was  no 
less  positive  in  his  convictions  at  this  point  than  the  most 
zealous  Churchman.  "  More  knowledge,"  he  said,  "  is 
ordinarily  diffused,  especially  among  the  young  and  igno- 
rant, by  one  hour's  catechetical  exercise,  than  by  many 
hours' continual  discourse."^ 

Churchman  and  Puritan,  great  preacher  and  great 
teacher,  in  the  days  of  new  foundation-laying  in  Protes- 
tant Christendom,  were  at  one  in  this  opinion ;  as,  indeed, 
it  would  seem  that  every  intelligent  Bible  student  and 
Christian  thinker  must  always  be:  for  in  no  sphere  save 
in  that  of  religion — where  alone  interlocutory  teaching  is 

1  George  Herbert's  Remains,  p.  165.  That  Herbert  had  no  thought  of  con- 
fining catechetical  teaching  to  set  questions  and  answers,  is  evident  when  he 
says  (p.  163) :  "  Many  say  the  Catechism  by  rote,  as  parrots,  without  piercing 
into  the  sense  of  it ;  "  and,  again,  when  he  counsels  the  var)'ing  of  the  ques- 
tions according  to  the  capacity  of  the  learner,  in  order  to  "draw  out  of 
ignorant  and  silly  souls,  even  the  dark  points  of  religion."  "  Catechising  in 
its  true  and  original  sense,"  said  Bishop  Law,  a  century  later  than  Herbert, 
"  implies  something  more  than  the  bare  running  over  of  an  old  form  [even] 
though  that  [form]  consists  of  proper  questions  and  answers,  and  contains 
whatsoever  is  needful  for  faith  and  practice."  Archdeacon  Bather,  who  cites 
this  statement  of  Law,  cites  also,  with  approval,  the  yet  earlier  statement  of 
Dean  Comber,  that  "  sermons  can  never  do  good  upon  an  imcatechised  con- 
gregation" (see  Hints  on  the  Art  of  Catechising,  pp.  6,  171). 

^  Cited  by  Dr.  Steel  in  The  Christian  Teacher  in  Sunday  Schools,  p.  128. 


92  THE  SUNDA  V-  SCHO OL  : 

divinely  enjoined — was  there  ever  attempted  the  folly  of 
teaching  primary  truths,  to  the  young  and  the  ignorant, 
by  unbroken  discourse.  Perhaps  the  facts  and  the  argu- 
ments in  this  entire  case  have  never  been  put  more 
concisely  and  tellingly  than  in  the  words  of  the  loyal  and 
royal  old  English  preacher,  Dr.  Robert  South.  "  Nay," 
he  said,  "  I  take  schoolmasters  to  have  a  more  powerful 
influence  upon  the  spirits  of  men  than  preachers  them- 
selves; ...  it  being  seldom  found  that  the  pulpit  mends 
what  the  school  has  marred.  ,  .  ,  And  for  my  own  part  I 
never  thought  a  pulpit,  a  cushion,  and  an  hourglass,  such 
necessary  means  of  salvation,  but  that  much  of  the  time 
and  labor  which  is  spent  about  them,  might  be  much 
more  profitably  bestowed  in  catechising  youth  from  the 
desk  ;  preaching  being  a  kind  of  spiritual  diet  upon  which 
people  are  always  feeding,  but  never  full  ;  and  many  poor 
souls,  God  knows  too,  too  like  Pharaoh's  kine,  much 
the  leaner  for  their  full  feed.  And  how,  for  God's  sake, 
should  it  be  otherwise?  For  to  preach  to  people  without 
principles  [without  a  basis  of  established  convictions]  is  to 
build  where  there  is  no  foundation,  or  rather  where  there 
is  not  so  much  as  ground  to  build  upon.  But  people 
are  not  to  be  harangued,  but  catechised  [instructed],  into 
principles  :  and  this  is  not  the  proper  work  of  the  pulpit, 
any  more  than  threshing  can  pass  for  sowing.  Young 
minds  are  to  be  leisurely  formed  and  fashioned  with  the 
first  plain,  simple,  and  substantial  rudiments  of  religion. 
And  to  expect  that  this  should  be  done  by  preaching,  or 
force  of  lungs,  is  just  as  if  a  smith,  or  artist  who  works 
in  metal,  should  think  to  frame  and  shape  out  his  work 
only  with  his  bellows."  ^ 

1  South's  Sermons  :  Sermon  49,  "  The  Virtuous  Education  of  Youth." 


ITS  VARYING  PROGRESS.  93 

That  the  bellows  has  an  important  part  in  the  work  of 
bringing  tlie  gathered  coals  to  a  glow  at  tlie  spiritual 
forge,  so  tliat  they  may  heat  the  metal  to  a  fitness  for  its 
hammering  and  shaping,  no  one  will  question.  But  the 
advantage  of  other  agencies  besides  the  bellows,  in  pref- 
erence to  a  reliance  upon  that  alone,  in  the  proper  work 
of  the  spiritual  forge-tender,  is  well  illustrated  in  a  com- 
parison of  the  labors  of  Whitefield  and  Wesley,  in  the 
English  reformation  of  the  eighteenth  century,  in  which 
they  toiled  together.  Whitefield  had  the  greater  bellows 
power;  and  the  hardest  iron  softened  in  the  coals  which 
kindled  and  burned  under  the  breath  of  his  preaching.^ 
Yet  he  made  little  use  of  any  other  agency  than  that; 
while  Wesley  took  the  pinchers  and  the  hammer  of  the 
class-meeting  agency,  and  saw  to  it  that  every  individual 
member  of  the  church  organization  put  into  operation  by 
him  was  personally  reached  and  trained  through  an  inter- 
locutory exercise,  week  by  week,  year  in  and  year  out. 
Arid  now  that  which  we  know  of  Whitefield's  work  is 
chiefly  in  the  recorded  testimony  of  men  who  tell  how 
the  fires  burned  when  he  blew  the  bellows;  while  the 
gleam  of  new  forges  are  seen  all  the  world  over,  as  a 
result  of  Wesley's  conformity,  in  his  methods  of  training, 
to  the  divinely  appointed  plan  of  church  formation  and 
church-life  maintaining. 

In  spite,  however,  of  the  lessons  of  the  Protestant  Ref- 

1  This  figure  of  the  bellows,  as  applicable  to  the  preacher,  seems  to  have 
been  in  the  mind  of  Whitefield  himself,  when  he  wrote  to  Governor  Belcher, 
concerning  a  visit  to  Boston  by  his  friend  Gilbert  Tennent,  as  following  up 
his  own  beginning  there  :  "This  week  Mr.  Tennent  proposes  to  set  out  for 
Boston,  to  blow  up  the  divine  flame  recently  kindled  there."  See  Home,  the 
School  and  the  Church,  V.,  167. 


94  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 

ormation  in  its  progress  and  in  its  checking ;  in  spite 
of  the  concurrent  testimony  of  great  preachers  and  great 
teachers  all  along  the  centuries ;  in  spite  of  the  uniform 
indications  of  all  ecclesiastical  history ;  in  spite  of  the 
specific  injunctions  of  the  great  Head  of  the  Church, — 
interlocutory  Bible-teaching  again  declined  in  prominence 
in  the  Protestant  churches  of  Europe,  of  Great  Britain, 
and  of  America,  during  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth 
centuries,  as  it  had  declined  in  the  universal  Christian 
Church  in  the  eight  or  ten  centuries  preceding  the  six- 
teenth. Here  and  there,  as  similarly  through  the  Middle 
Ages,  there  were  those  who  continued  faithful  to  God's 
plan  for  the  Church  teaching  of  the  young ;  and  who  were 
blessed  and  were- a  blessing  accordingly.  The  Mora- 
vians, for  example,  lineal  descendants  of  the  Hussites, 
never  wholly  intermitted  this  method  of  working.  They 
continued  to  give  the  first  place  to  the  Bible,  and  their 
first  care  to  the  children,  in  the  work  of  religious  instruc- 
tion. There  were  local  churches,  also,  in  every  great 
body  of  Protestant  Christians,  which  were  distinguished 
for  their  recognition  of  the  child-teaching  duty  of  the 
Church,  while  that  duty  was  ignored  or  neglected  so 
widely  in  their  communion  at  large.  But  these  instances 
were  exceptional.  It  seemed,  indeed,  as  if,  in  the  varying 
progress  of  the  Christian  centuries,  the  Sunday-school  idea 
had  less  prominence  in  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth 
than  in  the  third  and  fourth  centuries.  And  this  outlook 
gave  little  hope  to  the  Church  or  to  the  world. 


LECTURE   III. 


THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL:     ITS   MODERN  REVIVAL 
AND  EXPANSION. 


III. 

THE  SUNDA  V  SCHOOL :     ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL 
AND  EXPANSION 

Religious  Declension  in  the  Eighteenth  Century. —  Mid -century 
Revivals. —  Zinzendorf  s  and  Wesley's  Work  among  Children. 
— The  Sunday-school  Beginnings  of  Robert  Raikes. —  Nature 
and  Progress  of  this  Movement. —  Its  Influence  in  England  and 
Elsewhere. — Sunday-schools  in  America. — Illustrations  of  their 
Power. — As  Seen  by  Foreigners. — As  Imitated  Abroad. —  Im- 
proved Sunday-school  Methods. —  The  International  Lesson 
System. — Growth  in  Popular  Bible  Study. — The  Sunday-school 
of  To-day. 

I 
In  whatever  aspect  it  be  viewed,  the  contrast  between  ! 

the  religious  Hfe  of  the  Protestant  world  in  the  sixteenth : 
century  and  in  the  eighteenth,  is  a  sad  one.  The  de-j 
cadence  of  moral  and  spiritual  power  in  the  Protestant 
nations  of  Europe  and  America,  as  a  whole,  despite  its 
partial  checks  by  religious  revivals  on  both  sides  of  the| 
ocean,  continued  with  generally  accelerated  force  to  th^ 
latter  third  of  the  eighteenth  century;  with  its  culminaj- 
tion  in  the  volcanic  outburst  of  the  French  Revolutioni 
and  the  accompanying  earthquake  tremblings  of  the\ 
moral  world.  1 

On  this  point  all  historians  are  practically  at  one.  In 
Germany  the  period  in  question  is  characterized,  by  the 
church  historian  Kurtz,  as  "the  years  of  spiritual  fam- 

7  97 


98  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

ine."^  Of  the  rationalistic  cyclone  which  burst  over  his 
land  at  the  close  of  that  period,  he  says :  "  The  storm 
came  from  abroad;  but  it  was  invested  with  the  mighty 
power  of  the  spirit  of  the  age;  and  it  found  a  dissolution 
and  agitation  going  on  within  which  brought  sympathies 
and  allies  to  it  from  all  sides,  and  promoted  the  transition 
of  the  one  extreme  into  the  other."  ^  De  Pressense, 
writing  of  the  corresponding  religious  decline  in  France, 
ascribes  its  origin,  as  does  Kurtz,  to  countries  beyond 
his  own ;  but  its  effects  he  finds  both  at  home  and 
abroad.  "Nothing  is  so  sad,"  he  says,  "as  the  religious 
history  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Piety  languishes; 
science  there  is  none,  at  least  on  the  side  of  the  defend- 
ers of  Christianity.  In  England  and  in  Germany  a 
parching  wind  blows  over  hearts  and  minds.  There  is 
preached  in  the  Protestant  pulpits — in  those  which  are 
standing — a  religion  without  grandeur,  without  myste- 
ries; which  has  neither  the  boldness  of  philosophy,  nor 
that  of  faith."  ^ 

Looking  at  England  from  the  stand-point  of  whatever 
historical  writer  we  turn  to,  we  find  much  the  same  state 
of  things  described  there.  lA  liistorian  of  English  litera- 
ture says  of  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century:  "  It  was 
remarkable  for  the  low  tone  of  manners  and  sentiment; 
perhaps  the  lowest  that  ever  prevailed  in  England."^  A 
historian  of  English  jurisprudence  says  of  the  same  period: 
"  The  upper  classes  were  corrupt  v/ithout  refinement ;  the 
middle,  gross  without  humor;  and  the  lower,  brutal  with- 

1  Text- Book  of  Church  History,  II.,  308.  '^  Ibid.,  II.,  277. 

*  The  Church  atid  the  French  Revolution,  p.  15. 

■•  Shaw's  Manual  of  English  Lit.,  p.  315. 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  99 

out  honesty."^  Bishop  Ryle,  with  the  evangehcal  sym- 
pathies of  a  Low  Churchman,  says:  "The  state  of  this 
country,  in  a  reHgious  and  moral  point  of  view,  in  the 
middle  of  last  century,  was  so  painfully  unsatisfactory 
that  it  is  difficult  to  convey  any  adequate  idea  of  it. 
English  people  of  the  present  day,  who  have  never  been 
led  to  inquire  into  the  subject,  can  have  no  conception  of 
the  darkness  that  prevailed.  From  the  year  1700  till 
about  the  era  of  the  French  Revolution,  England  seemed 
barren  of  all  that  is  really  good.  How  such  a  state  of 
things  can  have  arisen  in  a  land  of  free  Bibles  and  pro- 
fessing Protestantism  is  almost  past  comprehension.  .  .  . 
There  was  darkness  in  high  places,  and  darkness  in  low 
places;  darkness  in  the  court,  the  camp,  the  Parliament, 
and  the  bar;  darkness  in  country,  and  darkness  in  town; 
darkness  among  rich,  and  darkness  among  poor;  —  a 
gross,  thick,  religious  and  moral  darkness ;  a  darkness 
that  might  be  felt."^ 

A  more  recent  history  of  the  English  Church  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  from  the  stand-point  of  a  stauncher 
Churchman,  while  aiming  to  show  that  the  state  of  things 
in  that  church  was  not  so  bad  as  is  pictured  by  Bishop 
Ryle,  bears  added  testimony  to  the  general  decline  in 
religion  and  morals  then  existing  in  England.  "  That  lax 
morality  and  religious  indifference  prevailed  more  or  less 
among  all  classes  during  this  period,"  it  says,  "  we  learn 
from  the  concurrent  testimony  of  writers  of  every  kind 
and  creed.     Turn  where  one  will,  the  same  melancholy 

1  Phillimore's  History  of  the  Law  of  Evidence,  p.  546  ;  cited  in  Forsyth's 
Novels  and  Novelists  of  the  Eighteenth  Century,  p.  17. 

2  The  Christian  Leaders  of  the  Last  Century,  p.  13  f. 


I OO  THE  SUN  DA  Y-  SCHO  OL : 

picture  is  presented  to  us."^  Finally,  such  impartial  and 
careful  historians  as  Lord  Mahon,^  and  Lecky,^  and  Green,* 
multiply  detailed  facts,  and  citations  of  contemporaneous 
opinion,  in  evidence  of  a  measure  of  ignorance,  of  irre- 
ligion,  and  of  immorality  in  the  English  community 
generally,  in  the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century, 
which  it  is  not  easy  now  to  realize.  As  in  the  case  of  the 
French  and  German  historians,  the  English  writers  on 
this  period  attribute  the  causes  of  the  decline  to  influences 
beyond  their  own  country ;  and  they  find  occasion  for 
gratulation  in  the  thought  that  "  if  England  was  morally 
and  spiritually  in  low  estate  at  this  period,  she  was,  at 
any  rate,  in  a  better  plight  than  her  neighbors."* 

America  shows  much  the  same  decline  in  morals  and 
religion  during  the  eighteenth  century  as  England  and  the 
continent  of  Europe,  with  a  similar  attempt  on  the  part 
of  historians  to  prove  that  its  origin  was  in  an  influence 
which  came  from  abroad.  Dr.  Dorchester,  in  connection 
with  his  valuable  compilation  of  facts  in  this  line,  says  : 
"The  corruption  of  manners,  working  downward  through 
English  society  during  the  reigns  of  William  III.,  Queen 
Anne,  and  the  first  two  Georges,  extended  to  American 
shores,  changing  the  moral  aspects  of  the  people.  In 
the  first  third  of  the  eighteenth  century  this  deterioration 
was  very  plain.     The  drinking  habits,  hitherto  very  mod- 

'  Abbey  and  Overton's    The  English   Church  in  the   Eighteenth  Century, 
p.  302  f.     See,  also,  pp.  5,  25  f.,  303-310. 

^  History  of  England  fro7n  ijij  to  JjSj,  VII.,  330. 

'  Histoty  of  England  in   the  Eighteenth  Century,  Vol.  II.,  ch.  9;  Vol.  VI., 
ch.  23. 

*  History  of  the  English  People,  Bk.  ix.,  chs.  1-4. 

^  The  English  Church  in  the  Eighteenth  Century,  p.  311.    See,  also,  Lecky's 
Hist,  of  Eng.,  II.,  691. 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  1 01 

erate,  were  increased,  though  [they  were]  not  as  bad  as 
at  the  close  of  the  century."  ^  Referring  to  the  revivals 
under  Edwards  and  Whitefield,  in  1735-45,  he  says: 
"  They  were  an  incalculable  blessing  to  the  Colonial 
churches  and  communities,  checking  for  a  time  the  spread 
of  immorality.  But  there  speedily  followed  a  long  and 
troublous  period  (1750— 1 800)  and  its  distracting  events — 
the  French  and  Indian  wars ;  the  conflicting  agitations 
preceding  the  Revolutionary  War;  the  war  itself,  with 
the  usual  depraving  influences;  .  .  .  the  general  infusion 
of  European  skepticism  and  manners ;  and  the  spread  of 
New  England  rum."  ^  And  he  adds  that  "  a  detailed 
statement  of  American  manners  in  the  last  quarter  of  the 
eighteenth  century  will  exhibit  a  condition  of  immorality 
having  no  later  parallel  on  our  shores." 

In  his  famous  funeral  sermon  on  Dr.  Nathanael  Emmons 
(which  is  said  to  have  been  read  in  advance  to  its  subject 
by  its  author),  the  Rev.  Thomas  Williams  expressed  him- 
self in  similar  terms  of  the  moral  aspects  of  the  years 
following  the  Revolutionary  War.  "  The  scenes  and 
events,"  he  says,  "  which  arose  after  the  establishment  of 
our  national  independence,  in  this  country,  in  the  Church 
of  God  on  earth,  and  among  the  nations  of  the  world, 
during  his  [Dr.  Emmons's]  ministry,  were  the  most 
astonishing  that  have  occurred  in  the  records  of  unin- 
spired history.  In  his  day,  the  conspiracy  of  infidels 
and  atheists  against  religion,  government  and  humanity, 
against  truth  and  peace,  order  and  liberty,  shook  the 
foundations  of  kingdoms  and  nations  ;  and  attempted  to 
destroy  from  the  earth  the  Church  and  kingdom  of  God, 

1  The  Problem  of  Religious  Progress,  p.  173,  ">■  Ibid.,  p.  177. 


I02  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

and  the  name  and  glory  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  In 
his  day,  the  '  three  unclean  spirits,  like  frogs,  were  coming 
from  the  mouth  of  the  dragon  and  from  the  mouth  of 
the  beast  and  from  the  mouth  of  the  false  prophet.'^ .  .  . 
Through  their  influence  impiety,  infidelity  and  inhu- 
manity, delusion,  disorder  and  wickedness  in  every  form, 
have  arisen  in  New  England,  and  in  other  parts  of  the 
world,  above  what  was  ever  before  known  on  earth. 
Error,  folly  and  vanity,  declension,  lukewarmness  and 
stupidity,  have  seized  and  destroyed  many  churches  in 
this  land;  and  have  reached  every  church  and  town,  every 
neighborhood  and  family."^ 

The  first  President  Dwight,  of  Yale,  in  commenting 
on  the  sad  state  of  things  in  this  last-named  period,  says 
of  its  immediate  causes :  "  Europe  .  .  .  consigned  to 
these  states  a  plentiful  supply  of  the  means  of  corruption. 
From  France,  Germany,  and  Great  Britain,  the  dregs  of 
infidelity  were  vomited  upon  us.  From  the  'Systhnc  de 
la  Nature'  and  the  'Philosophical  Dictionary,'  down  to 
the  'Political  Justice'  of  Godwin,  and  the  'Age  of  Rea- 
son,' the  whole  mass  of  pollution  was  emptied  in  upon 
us  as  a  deluge."^  A  little  later  Dr.  Lyman  Beecher, 
looking  back  upon  this  time,  said  with  like  emphatic 
earnestness:  "  When  that  mighty  convulsion  took  place, 
which  a  second  time  burst  open  the  bottomless  pit,  and 
spread  darkness  and  dismay  over  Europe,  every  gale 
brought  to  our  shores  contagion  and  death.  Thousands 
at  once  breathed  the  tainted  air,  and  felt  the  fever  kindle 

1  Rev.  i6 :  13. 

2  Discourse  on  the  Official  Character  of  Nathavael  Emmons,  p.  67  f. 

3  Dwight's  Travels,  IV.,  380. 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  103 

in  the  brain.  A  paroxysm  of  moral  madness  and  terrific 
innovation  ensued."^ 

As  to  the  fact  of  the  existing  decline  in  public  morals 
and  in  religious  life  on  both  sides  of  the  ocean  in  the 
latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century,  there  would  seem  to 
be  no  room  for  question;  but  as  to  its  primary  cause,  the 
reasons  generally  given  by  historians  are  fairly  open  to 
challenge.  Even  though  it  be  shown  that  influences  of 
evil  are  at  work  in  the  world,  is  that  in  itself  sulificient  to 
account  for  the  failure  of  the  Church  of  Christ  to  maintain 
its  purity  and  its  power?  Is  the  Church,  indeed,  depend- 
ent for  the  savor  of  its  saltness  on  the  measure  of  good 
which  it  absorbs  from  the  community  about  it?  Or  is  it 
its  very  mission  to  be  at  its  best  when  the  world  is  at  its 
worst?  Rightly  furnished,  the  Church  of  Christ  is  proof 
against  all  outside  evil.  When  the  Church  fails  to  with- 
stand evil,  and  when  its  spiritual  life  declines,  the  cause 
of  trouble  is  to  be  sought  within  the  Church,  and  not 
beyond  it.  Then  is  the  time  to  look  for  the  neglect,  or 
for  the  misuse,  by  the  Church,  of  God's  appointed  means 
and  methods  in  the  line  of  its  legitimate  working. 

If  the  families  of  Christian  missionaries  in  a  heathen 
land  were,  one  after  another,  lapsing  into  heathenism, 
would  it  be  deemed  sufficient  to  ascertain  the  precise 
form  of  error  into  which  they  lapsed,  and  to  locate  the 
geographical  direction  from  which  it  reached  their  neigh- 
borhood? Would  not  the  necessity  be  recognized  of 
learning  what  essential  guards  about  those  Christian  fami- 
lies had  been  lacking  amid  their  heathen  surroundings  ? 
Why  then  should  it  be  concluded  satisfactory  to  account 

I  Sermons  Delivered  on  I'urious  Occasions,  p.  no. 


1 04  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

for  the  low  state  of  the  Protestant  churches  of  Europe 
and  America  in  the  eighteenth  century,  by  an  enumera- 
tion of  their  temptations,  and  an  identifying  of  their 
tempters,  without  giving  chief  prominence  to  their  so 
general  neglect  of  the  church-school,  or  the  Sunday- 
school,  as  God's  appointed  agency  for  winning  and  train- 
ing the  young? 

God  has  chosen  to  give  power  to  his  Church  in  and 
through  the  means  and  measures  of  his  pointing  out. 
To  the  school  idea  he  has  assigned  a  foremost  place  in 
the  right  workings  of  the  Church  of  Christ.  Whenever 
that  idea  is  lost  sight  of,  or  is  obscured,  the  Church  is  a 
loser  in  its  holding  power  and  in  its  power  of  progress. 
It  is  only  when  that  idea  is  kept  in  due  prominence  that 
the  Church  has  a  possibility  of  filling  its  place  and  of 
doing^ts  proper  work.  That  that  idea  was  obscured  in 
the  Protestant  world,  during  the  latter  part  of  the  seven- 
teenth and  the  first  half  of  the  eighteenth  century,  is 
a  fact  which  admits  of  no  dispute.  Even  in  England, 
where  the  state  of  things  was  better  than  in  some  other 
countries,  the  religious  teaching  of  the  young  was  sadly 
neglected.  Abbey  and  Overton,  the  English  Church  his- 
torians already  cited,  say  at  this  point :  "  In  the  latter 
part  of  the  seventeenth  and  through  the  earlier  years  of 
the  eighteenth  century,  we  find  earnest  Churchmen,  of  all 
opinions,  sorely  lamenting  the  comparative  disuse  of  the 
old  [and  still  enjoined]  custom  of  catechising  [of  the 
interlocutory  teaching  of  the  young]  on  Sunday  after- 
noons. Five  successive  archbishops  of  Canterbury — 
Sheldon,  Sancroft,  Tillotson,  Tenison,  and  Wake — how- 
ever widely  their  opinions  might  differ  on  some  points 
relating  to  the  edification  of  the  Church,  were  cordially 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  I05 

agreed  in  this."*  And  as  to  another  prominent  religious 
training  agency  at  the  same  period,  these  writers  say: 
"  If  we  ask  what  was  the  state  of  the  Universities,  which 
ought  to  be  the  centres  of  hght,  diffusing  itself  through- 
out the  whole  nation,  the  training-grounds  of  those  who 
are  to  be  the  trainers  of  their  fellow-men,  we  have  the 
evidence  of  such  different  kinds  of  men  as  Swift,  Defoe, 
Gray,  Gibbon,  Johnson,  John  Wesley,  Lord  Eldon,  and 
Lord  Chesterfield,  all  agreeing  on  this  point,  that  both 
[of]  the  great  Universities  were  neglectful  and  inefficient 
in  the  performance  of  their  proper  work."^ 

"  For  more  than  sixty  years  after  the  death  of  [Queen] 
Anne  [17 14],"  says  Lecky,  "the  history  of  education  in 
England  is  almost  a  blank."*  Referring  to  the  latter  half 
of  the  eighteenth  centur}^,  Lord  Mahon  says  :  "  Through- 
out England  the  education  of  the  laboring  classes  was 
most  grievously  neglected;  the  supineness  of  the  clergy 
of  that  age  being  manifest  on  this  point  as  on  every 
other."*  And  by  this  neglect  of  God's  appointed  training 
agency,  as  a  means  of  holding  those  who  were  already 
within  the  fold  of  the  Church,  and  of  hopefully  reaching 
those  who  were  without,  the  decline  of  life  and  power  in 
the  Church,  as  the  controlling  force  in  the  community, 
was  assured — and  was  brought  about.  Only  God  knows 
what  would  have  been  the  result  to  the  Church  and  to 
the  world,  if  the  church  Bible -school  -agency  had  not 
been  revived  and  made  newly  prominent  under  circum- 
stances which  led  to  its  extension  and  to  its  expansion  in 
a  measure  beyond  all  precedent. 

^  The  English  Chtirch  in  the  Eighteenth  Century,  p.  469. 
2 /i5/</.,  p.  303.         ^  Hist,  of  Eng.,W\.,  276.         *•  Hist,  of  Eng.,V\\.,-ii2. 


I06  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

To  begin  with,  there  were  remarkable  revivals  of  re- 
lio-ion  near  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century,  in 
connection  with  the  work  of  Zinzendorf  in  Germany,  of 
Wesley  and  Whitefield  in  Great  Britain,  and  of  Edwards 
and  Whitefield  in  the  United  States.  But  these  revivals, 
and  the  work  of  these  great  men,  could,  in  the  very  nature 
of  things,  have  permanent  power  only  as  the  methods  and 
agencies  put  into  fresh  operation  by  them  corresponded 
to  God's  appointment,  and  were,  in  his  providence,  suited 
to  the  work  to  which  they  were  applied.  As  in  the  case 
of  Luther  and  Calvin  and  Knox,  and  again  of  Loyola  and 
Xavier,  Zinzendorf  and  Wesley  realized  that  no  revival 
could  be  permanent  in  its  results,  nor  could  any  reforma- 
tion be  an  abiding  one,  except  by  means  of  reaching  and 
systematically  training  the  young ;  and  it  was  in  the  light 
of  this  fundamental  truth  that  they  prosecuted  their  evan- 
gelizing and  upbuilding  work  most  successfully. 

Zinzendorf  and  his  co-workers  preached  directly  to  the 
children,  gathered  large  numbers  of  them  into  the  church- 
fold,^  and  at  the  same  time  arranged  for  the  personal 
training  of  the  converts  individually,  by  clustering  them 
in  small  classes  under  special  teachers.^     Wesley  followed 

1  In  1727  there  was  a  remarkable  revival  among  the  Moravian  children  at 
Bertholdsdorf  and  Herrnhut,  which  had  its  beginning  in  a  discourse  to  the 
girls  by  Count  Zinzendorf.  (See  Cranz's  Hist. of  the  Brethren,  p.  119  f.).  For 
evidence  of  Zinzendorf 's  interest  in  the  religious  training  of  children,  by  the 
church,  see,  also,  Spangenberg's  Life  of  Zinzendorf ,  p.  85  f. 

2  In  an  address  delivered  July  2,  1747,  Count  Zinzendorf  mentioned  that  just 
twenty  years  before  then,  [that  is,  July  2,  1727,]  on  the  day  commemorative 
of  the  visit  of  Mary  to  Elisabeth,  the  idea  came  to  him  of  organizing  the  people 
of  his  charge  into  "bands  or  societies,"  or  small  classes;  and  he  added: 
"  These  were  established  throughout  the  whole  community  the  following 
week,  and  have  been  productive  of  such  blessed  effects,  that  I  believe  [that] 
without  such  an  institution  the  church  would  never  have  become  what  it  now 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  10/ 

Zinzendorf  in  both  particulars.^  He  laid  great  stress  on 
the  work  among  children,  and  on  the  class  instruction  of 
converts.  "  Unless  ...  we  can  take  care  of  the  rising 
generation,  the  present  revival  of  religion,"  he  said,  "  will 
be  res  imiiis  actatis ;  it  will  last  only  the  age  of  a  man."^ 

is.  The  societies,  called  bands,  consist  of  a  few  individuals  met  together  in 
the  name  of  Jesus,  amongst  whom  Jesus  is,  who  converse  together  in  a  par- 
ticularly child-like  manner  on  the  state  of  their  hearts,  and  conceal  nothing 
from  each  other,  but  have  wholly  committed  themselves  to  each  other  in  the 
Lord.  ...  In  each  of  them  a  brother  or  a  sister,  according  to  the  sex  [of  the 
band  or  class],  was  commissioned  to  take  particular  charge  of  the  rest.  When 
they  met  they  either  read  something  of  an  edifying  nature,  sang,  and  prayed, 
or  else  conversed  together."  It  was  about  this  time  that  Zinzendorf  also 
revived  the  primitive  "  love-feast "  among  his  people.  (Spangenberg's  Life 
of  Zinzendorf  ,  pp.  86-89.) 

J  One  of  Zinzendorf's  helpers  was  Peter  Boehler,  born  at  Frankfort-on-the- 
Main,  in  1712.  He  was  made  a  bishop  at  Herrnhut  in  1748.  While  at  Lon- 
don, as  a  Moravian  worker,  early  in  1738,  he  became  acquainted  with  John 
Wesley,  and  seems  to  have  put  his  stamp  upon  him  permanently.  Tyerman 
records  that  Wesley  "  was  induced  [by  Boehler]  to  become  a  member  of  the 
first  Moravian  society  in  Fetter  Lane  [London]."  The  rules  of  that  society, 
framed  "  in  obedience  to  the  command  of  God  by  St.  James,  and  by  the  advice 
of  Peter  Boehler,"  provided  that  the  members  "  should  be  divided  into  bands, 
of  not  fewer  than  five  nor  more  than  ten  ;  and  that  some  one  in  each  band 
should  be  desired  to  interrogate  the  rest,  and  should  be  called  the  leader. 
Each  band  was  to  meet  twice  a  week."  The  details  of  the  plan  of  exercises,  and 
of  the  scope  of  management  of  these  bands,  would  seem  to  indicate,  beyond  a 
question,  the  origin  of  the  idea  of  the  subsequent  system  of  Methodist  class 
meetings  (see  Tyerman's  Life  and  Times  of  John  Wesley,  I.,  195  f. ;  also 
Wesley's  Journal  for  May,  1738,  Works,  I.).  In  the  summer  following  his  first 
connection  with  the  Moravian  society  in  London,  Wesley  visited  Zinzendorf 
at  Herrnhut.  In  his  journal  at  that  time  he  describes  the  methods  of  Mora- 
vian church  organization  and  discipline,  similar  to  those  which  Boehler  had 
disclosed  to  him.  This  system  impressed  Wesley  to  such  an  extent  that  he 
wrote  out  its  details  in  full  in  his  journal ;  and  the  future  showed  the  value 
which  he  attached  to  it.  (See  Wesley's  Journal  for  August,  1738,  and  for 
February  and  March,  1742  [  Works,  I.]  ;  also  Tyerman's  Life  of  Wesley,  I., 
377-381,  446,  463.) 

2  Tyerman's  Life  of  Wesley ,  III.,  23.  See,  also,  Wesley's  Sermons:  Ser- 
mon 94,  on  Family  Religion  (  Works,  VH.,  73). 


Io8  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

And  in  that  statement  Wesley  touched  the  truth  of  truths 
concerning  God's  method  of  giving  permanent  power  to 
the  work  of  his  Church.  To  his  preachers,  Wesley  fol- 
lowed this  affirmation  with  the  injunction:  "Spend  an 
hour  a  week  with  the  children,  in  every  large  town, 
whether  you  like  it  or  not.  Talk  with  them  every  time 
you  sec  any  at  home.  Pray  in  earnest  for  them."^  Lecky, 
in  his  careful  review  of  the  methods  and  influence  of  the 
Wesleyan  movement,  says:  "The  Methodists  appear  to 
have  preached  especially  to  children;"  and  he  cites  the 
words  of  Wesley  when  describing,  "  among  other  cases,  a 
remarkable  revival  among  children  at  Stockton -upon - 
Tees,  in  1784:  '  Is  not  this  a  new  thing  upon  the  earth  ? 
God  begins  his  work  in  children.  .  .  .  Thus  the  flame 
spreads  to  those  of  riper  years.'" ^  Moreover,  from  the 
beginning  of  his  more  active  labors,  Wesley  insisted  that 
all  who  were  brought  under  his  instruction  should  be 
gathered  in  "  bands,"  or  "classes,"  for  their  personal  train- 
ing.* So  far  the  Wesleyan  movement  included  important 
elements  of  the  Sunday-school  agency;  and  in  the  same 
measure  that  movement  had  a  possibility  of  continuance 
and  permanency. 

But  there  was  still  a  lack,  and  the  effect  of  it  was  obvi- 
ous. The  methods  of  the  Wesleyans,  like  those  of  the 
Moravians,  were  limited  to  those  bodies  of  Christians, 
even  while  the  influence  of  their  work  extended  far  beyond 
them.     Their  evangelizing  efforts  among  children  were 

1  Tyerman's  Life  of  Wesley,  III.,  23. 

*  Hist,  rf  Eng.,  II.,  665.  For  accounts  of  Wesley's  work  among  children, 
see  his  Journal,  for  Aug.  19,  1776;  Dec.  2,  1778  ;  April  5,  April  27,  June  7, 
178a;  May  i8,  June  8,  1784,  etc.  (  Works,  IV.). 

•  Tyerman's  Life  of  Wesley,  I.,  379. 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  I09 

but  occasional,  as  visiting  preachers  had  opportunities  in 
that  direction.  And  the  training  of  converts  in  their 
bands,  or  classes,  was  mainly  in  the  sphere  of  Christian 
experience.  There  was  still  needed  a  revival  of  the  primi- 
tive church-school  agency,  to  be  made  use  of  alike  by 
every  branch  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  for  the  persistent 
and  systematic  teaching  of  children  and  of  the  child-like, 
in  the  "all  things"  of  the  Holy  Scriptures.  Unless  that 
agency  should  reappear,  .the  Church  of  Christ  must  con- 
tinue crippled  for  its  divinely  directed  work,  and  the  best 
results  of  the  latest  revival,  like  those  of  former  days, 
must  be  confined  to  the  lifetime  of  its  chief  promoters. 
It  was  the  timely  meeting  of  that  lack  which  proved  a 
new  beginning  of  good  to  the  Protestant  Christian  world. 

It  was  in  the   city  of  Gloucester,  England,  in  July, 
1780,^  that  Robert  Raikes,  the  editor  and  proprietor  of 

1  It  is  a  singular  fact,  that,  for  more  than  three-quarters  of  a  century,  the 
beginning  of  Railces's  work  was  understood  to  be  1781,  instead  of  1780.  The 
Jubilee,  or  half-century  celebration,  of  the  Raikes  movement,  was  in  1831. 
The  more  careful  histories  of  the  Sunday-school,  such  as  Pray's  and  Watson's, 
were  positive  in  fixing  its  start  in  1781;  and  cyclopedias  and  modern  church 
histories,  generally,  accepted  this  as  the  correct  date.  Yet  the  Centenai-y  of 
Sunday-schools  was  observed  in  1880;  the  inscription  on  the  pedestal  of 
Raikes's  statue,  erected  at  that  time  in  London,  gives  1780  as  the  date  of  his 
first  Sunday-school;  and,  practically,  no  question  now  exists  that  this  is  cor- 
rect. Raikes's  letter  concerning  his  work,  published  in  the  Gentleman's 
Magazine  for  June,  1784,  says  that  it  was  "about  three  years"  before  that 
writing  that  he  began  his  first  Sunday-school.  Here,  perhaps,  is  the  origin 
of  the  idea  that  the  beginning  was  in  1781.  But  that  letter  of  Raikes  is  dated 
"  November  25th,"  hence  must  have  been  written  as  early  as  1783.  More- 
over, the  date  of  the  beginning  of  the  Gloucester  Sunday-schools  is  given  as 
1780  on  the  monument  of  the  Rev.  Thomas  Stock,  a  co-worker  with  Raikes 
in  their  starting  (Pray's  Hist,  of  Sunday-schools,  p.  137) ;  and  a  Bible  pre- 
sented, at  the  beginning  of  this  work,  to  Mr.  King,  in  whose  house  the  first 
Sunday-school  was  started  by  Raikes,  bore  in  it  the  date  of  "July,  1780." 
(See  Gregory's  Robert  Raikes,  p.  72.) 


1 1 0  THE  SVNDA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

The  Gloucester  Journal,  who  had  already  interested  him- 
self in  philanthropic  efforts  at  prison  reform,  gathered  the 
poorer  children  of  a  manufacturing  quarter  of  that  city 
into  the  rooms  of  a  private  house  of  the  neighborhood,'  for 
their  Sunday  instruction  in  reading  and  in  the  elementary 
truths  of  religion.  "  The  children  were  to  come  soon 
after  ten  in  the  morning,  and  stay  till  twelve ;  they  were 
then  to  go  home  and  stay  till  one ;  and  after  reading  a 
lesson  they  were  to  be  conducted  to  church.  After 
church  they  were  to  be  employed  in  repeating  the  cate- 
chism till  half-past  five,  and  then  to  be  dismissed,  with  an 
injunction  to  go  home  without  making  a  noise;  and  by 
no  means  to  play  in  the  street."^  Four  women  were 
employed  as  teachers  in  the  school,  at  the  rate  of  a  shil- 
ling a  day.^     And  this  was  the  beginning  of  the  modern 

1"  It  was  at  the  house  of  a  Mr.  King,  in  St.  Catherine  Street,  that  the  first 
Gloucester  Sunday-school  was  started,  in  the  month  of  July,  1780.  Mr.  King 
was  at  the  time  steward  to  Mr.  Pitt,  who  represented  Gloucester  in  Parliament 
for  some  years  "  (Gregory's  Robert  Raikcs,  p.  72). 

2  A  letter  from  Robert  Raikes,  dated  June  5,  1784,  in  the  Appendix  to 
Turner's  Sunday  Schools  Recommended,  p.  41. 

3  Describing  his  conversation  with  a  woman  of  the  neighborhood,  where  he 
started  his  first  Sunday-school,  Raikes  says  :  "  I  then  inquired  if  there  were 
any  decent,  well-disposed  women  in  the  neighborhood  who  kept  schools  for 
teaching  to  read.  I  presently  was  directed  to  four :  to  these  I  applied,  and 
made  an  agreement  with  them  to  receive  as  many  children  as  I  should  send 
them  upon  the  Sundays,  whom  they  were  to  instruct  in  reading  and  in  the 
Church  Catechism.  For  this  I  engaged  to  pay  them  each  a  shilling  for  their 
day's  employment.  The  women  seemed  pleased  with  the  proposal.  I  then 
waited  on  the  clergyman  before  mentioned  [the  Rev.  Thomas  Stock],  and 
imparted  to  him  my  plan ;  he  was  so  much  satisfied  with  the  idea,  that  he 
engaged  to  lend  his  assi'Jtance  by  going  round  to  the  schools  on  a  Sunday  after- 
noon, to  examine  the  progress  that  was  made,  and  to  enforce  order  and  deco- 
rum among  such  a  set  of  little  heathen"  (Raikes's  Letter  in  Gentlemaii's 
Magazine  for  June,  1784).  Gregory  {Robert  Raikes,  p.  72)  says  that,  "  prior 
to  the  establishment  of  the  school,  Mr.  Raikes  and  the  Rev.  T.  Stock  went  to 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  1 1 1 

Sunday-school  movement.  This  was  the  revival,  under 
new  auspices,  of  the  divinely  appointed  church  Bible- 
school.  This  was  the  starting-point  of  a  new  period  of 
life  and  hope  to  the  Church  of  Christ,  and,  through  the 
Church,  to  the  world. 

There  seems  to  have  been  absolutely  nothing  new  in 
the  Sunday-school  plans  of  Robert  Raikes.  Schools  of 
a  similar  character,  and  apparently  with  all  the  essential 
features  of  his  school,  were  organized  in  Upper  Egypt, 
and  in  Armenia,  and  elsewhere  in  the  East,  more  than 
fourteen  centuries  before  his  day.^  All  the  way  along 
the  intervening  centuries  there  had  been  repeated  revi- 
vals of  this  agency  of  evangelism  and  of  religious  instruc- 
tion, with  more  or  less  of  success.  The  seventeenth  and 
eighteenth  centuries  had  not  been  without  attempts  in  this 
direction,  in  England,  Ireland,  Scotland,  Wales,  and  the 
United  States.^     But  in  the  providence  of  God  the  times 

Mrs.  King's  house,  and  engaged  the  services  of  Mrs.  King  as  the  first  teacher, 
at  a  salary  of  I  J.  6d.  per  Sunday,  of  which  sum  Mr.  Raikes  contributed  a 
shilhng  and  Mr.  Stock  sixpence."  It  is  possible,  therefore,  that  Mr.  Stock 
added  a  sixpence  to  Mr.  Raikes's  shilling  in  the  case  of  one  teacher.  Indeed, 
Mr.  Raikes  wrote  on  another  occasion :  "The  stipend  to  the  teachers  here 
is  a  shilling  each  Sunday,  but  we  find  them  firing,  and  bestow  gratuities  as 
rewards  of  diligence,  which  may  make  it  worth  sixpence  more"  (Raikes's 
Letter  to  Mrs.  Harris,  in  Pray's  Hist,  of  Sunday-schools,  p.  145). 

1  See  p.  62  f. ,  ante. 

'  It  has  already  been  shown  (p.  74,  ante)  that  a  form  of  Sunday-schools 
was  inaugurated  by  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  in  1560, 
and  that  as  early  as  1603  a  similar  system  was  in  operation  in  the  Church  of 
England.  Yet  a  certain  curious  interest  attaches  to  the  record  of  sporadic 
instances  of  Sunday-school  work,  in  fields  where  that  work  was  not  systemati- 
cally and  generally  prosecuted,  after  its  post-Reformation  decline,  and  before 
its  revival  by  Robert  Raikes.  Therefore  it  is  that  the  following  instances  of 
such  work  may  properly  be  mentioned  just  here  ;  although  it  is  by  no  means 
probabl-e  that  they  stand  alone  in  the  history  of  such  undertakings  in  the 


112  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

were  now  ripe  for  a  revival  of  the  church-school  idea  in 
this  form,  and  for  its  progressive  prevalence  beyond  its 
extremest  limits  of  a  former  day. 

Mr.  Raikes  had  a  peculiar  advantage,  in  his  position 
as  the  editor  of  a  weekly  periodical,  with  its  opportunity 
of  enabling  him  to  make  widely  known  the  good  results 
of  his  new  enterprise.  Yet  it  was  not  until  his  experi- 
ment had  had  a  successful  trial  of  more  than  three  years 
that  he  made  an  announcement  of  it  in  his  periodical.^ 
His  earliest  sketch  of  his  work,  thus  given  to  the  public, 
in  November,  1783,  (without,  however,  the  mention  of  his 
own  name  in  connection  with  it,)  seems  to  have  attracted 
the  attention  of  Colonel  Richard  Townley,  of  Lancashire, 
and  to  have  incited  him  to  a  desire  to  introduce  similar 

period  and  countries  covered  by  them.  Sunday-schools  are  known,  or  are 
claimed,  to  have  been  conducted  in  Bath,  England,  (by  the  Rev.  Joseplr 
Alleine,)  in  1665-68;  in  Roxbury,  Massachusetts,  in  1674;  in  Norwich,  Con- 
necticut, in  1676;  in  Plymouth,  Massachusetts,  in  1680;  in  Newton,  Long 
Island,  (by  the  Rev.  Morgan  Jones,)  in  1683 ;  in  England,  (by  Bishop 
Frampton,)  in  1693  ;  in  Berks  and  Montgomery  counties,  Pennsylvania,  (by 
the  Schwenkfelders,)  in  1734;  in  Ephrata,  Pennsylvania,  (by  Ludwig  Hocker,) 
in  1740;  in  Bethlehem,  Connecticut,  (by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Joseph  Bellamy,)  in 
1740;  in  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania,  (by  Mrs.  Greening,)  in  1744;  in  Nor- 
ham,  Scotland,  (by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Morrison,)  in  1757 ;  in  Brechin,  Scotland, 
(by  the_  Rev.  David  Blair,)  in  1760;  in  Catterick,  England,  (by  the  Rev. 
Theophilus  Lindsey,)  in  1763  ;  in  Columbia,  Connecticut,  (by  the  Rev.  Eleazer 
Wheelock,)  in  1763;  in  Bedale,  England,  (by  Miss  Harrison,)  in  1765;  in 
High  Wycombe,  England,  (by  Miss  Hannah  Ball,)  in  1769  ;  in  Doagh,  County 
Anti:im,  Ireland,  (by  William  Gait,)  in  1770;  in  Bright,  County  Down  Ire- 
land, (by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Kennedy,)  in  1774;  ii^  Litde  Lever,  near  Bolton, 
England,  (by  James  Heys,)  in  1775 ;  in  Mansfield,  England,  (by  the  Rev. 
David  Simpson,)  in  1778  ;  also,  about  the  same  time,  in  Asbury,  England, 
(by  the  Rev.  Thomas  Stock) ;  and  in  Dursley,  England,  (by  William  King). 

1  In  a  letter  written  by  Mr.  Raikes,  in  1787,  to  Mrs.  Harris,  of  Chelsea,  it 
is  said  :  "  My  eldest  boy  was  born  the  very  day  I  made  public  to  the  world 
the  scheme  of  Sunday-schools,  in  my  paper  of  November  3d,  1783."  See 
Pray's  Hist,  of  Sunday-schools,  p.  147. 


JJS  MODERN  RE  VIVAL.  1 1 3 

schools  into  the  large  manufacturing  counties  of  York  and 
Lancaster.  The  latter,  therefore,  applied  to  the  mayor  of 
Gloucester,  and  through  the  mayor  to  Mr.  Raikes,  for 
added  information  on  the  subject.  A  letter  from  Mr.  . 
Raikes,  dated  November  25,  in  response  to  this  inquiry, 
was  published  "  in  the  Leeds  and  Manchester  papers  of 
December,  1783,  and  January,  1784;"^  and  in  June,  1784, 
it  was  given  in  full  in  the  pages  of  the  influential  Gentle- 
man's Magazine,  of  London.  Another  descriptive  letter 
by  Mr.  Raikes,  concerning  his  Sunday-schools,  was  pub- 
lished, a  little  later,  in  the  Arminian  Magazine,  edited  by 
John  Wesley.  Yet  again  he  spoke  through  the  pages  of 
the  European  Magazine.^  These  accounts  of  the  origin 
and  progress  of  Mr.  Raikes's  work  were  reproduced  in 
various  forms  in  the  metropolitan  and  provincial  press  of 
Great  Britain,  and  did  much  to  call  public  attention  to  the 
new  undertaking  in  its  importance  and  its  possibilities. 
It  is  said,  indeed,  that  "by  this  means  the  knowledge 
and  nature  of  Sunday-schools  were  'diffused  with  the 
rapidity  of  lightning  throughout  the  world.'" ^ 

While  this  Sunday-school  movement  began  within  the 
pale  of  the  Church  of  England,  it  was  at  first  purely  an 
individual,  rather  than  an  ecclesiastical,  movement;  as 
indeed  wellnigh  all  great  movements  of  progress  or  of 
reform  have  been,  from  the  days  of  John  the  Baptist  to 
those  of  Luther,  and  of  Loyola,  and  of  Knox,  and  of 

1  These  facts  are  given  in  the  Appendix  to  Turner's  Sunday  Schools  Recom- 
mended. 

2  See  Gregory's  Robert  Raikes,  pp.  59,  85.  Gregory  says  that  this  letter 
was  dated  June  5,  1785 ;  but  Turner,  in  his  Sunday  Schools  Recommended 
(p.  40),  as  already  noted  (at  p.  no,  ante),  gives  its  date  as  June  5,  1784. 

8  Pray's  Hist,  of  Sunday-schools,  p.  152. 


114  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

Wesley.  With  the  approval  of  some  church  dignitaries, 
and  against  the  opposition  of  others/  it  extended  itself  into 
the  field  of  all  religious  denominations  throughout  the 
United  Kingdom,  and  afterwards  over  the  ocean.  Bishop 
Porteus,  then  of  the  see  of  Chester,  and  later  of  London, 
was  its  early  and  earnest  advocate.  The  bishops  of  Nor- 
wich, Salisbury,  and  Llandaff,  and  the  Dean  of  Canterbury, 
followed  him  in  commending  it.  The  earls  of  Ducie  and 
of  Salisbury  gave  it  approval.  John  Newton,  William 
Cowper,  Thomas  Scott,  and  Mrs.  Trimmer,  were  hearty 
in  its  support.  William  Fox  and  Jonas  Hanway  secured 
the  organization  of  a  general  Sunday-school  society,  with 
its  centre  at  London.  Ladies  of  fashion  undertook  the 
work  of  Sunday-school  teaching.^  Then  the  Queen  herself 
gave  fresh  impetus  to  the  new  movement  by  adding  to  it 

1  Speaking  of  the  early  days  of  the  Sunday-school  movement,  Sir  Charles 
Reed  said,  at  the  Raikes  Centenary,  in  London,  in  June,  1880:  "When 
Sunday-schools  were  first  instituted  in  this  country  they  were  fiercely  attacked. 
It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  they  had  an  easy  progress.  They  were  attacked 
by  prelates  in  the  pulpit.  The  Bishop  of  Rochester  notably  denounced  it 
[the  Sunday-school  movement],  and  urged  the  clergy  not  to  support  it;  and 
the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  was  the  first  man  in  that  day  to  call  the  bishops 
together  to  consider  whether  something  could  not  be  done  to  stop  this  great 
enterprise."  (See  The  Sunday  School  Chronicle,  for  July  i,  1880,  p.  354.) 
Later,  the  Presbyterians  of  Scotland,  and  the  Congregationalists  of  New 
England,  were  represented  among  the  opponents  of  the  Sunday-school  as  it 
battled  its  way  into  deserved  favor. 

2  For  detailed  proofs  of  the  facts  here  referred  to,  see,  among  other  works, 
Lloyd's  Sketch  of  the  Life  of  Robert  Raikes,  and  of  the  History  of  Sunday 
Schools ;  Fray's  History  of  Sunday-schools  (a  book  which  has  proved  a  the- 
saurus of  facts  and  suggestions  for  subsequent  writers  on  both  sides  of  the 
ocean);  Watson's  The  First  Fifty  Years  of  the  Su7iday-school ;  Watson's 
The  Sunday-school  Union  :  Its  History  and  Work;  Gregory's  Robert  Raikes ; 
Paxton  Hood's  The  Day,  the  Book  and  the  Teacher  ;  Power's  Rise  and  Prog- 
ress of  Sunday-schools  ;  and  the  Centenary  numbers  of  The  Sunday  School 
Chronicle,  July,  1880. 


ITS  MODERN  RE  VIVAL.  1 1  5 

the  stamp  of  royal  favor.  Sending  for  Robert  Raikes, 
she  learned  from  his  own  lips  the  story  of  his  work  and 
its  progress ;  and,  as  he  reports  it,  "  Her  Majesty  most 
graciously  said  that  she  envied  those  who  had  the  power 
of  doing  good  by  thus  personally  promoting  the  welfare  of 
society,  in  giving  instruction  and  morality  to  the  general 
mass  of  the  common  people;  a  pleasure  from  which,  by 
her  situation,  she  was  debarred."^  And  so  Sunday-school 
teaching  came  to  be  not  only  reputable  but  fashionable 
among  the  better  classes  of  the  English  people ;  and  this 
in  itself  was  a  means  of  good  to  those  better  classes,  apart 
even  from  any  good  which  came  from  it  to  those  whom 
they  taught.  Thus  it  was  that  there  was  a  beginning  of 
better  days  to  the  English-speaking  Christian  world 
through  the  re-introduction  into  church  activities  of  the 
divinely  appointed  Bible-school  agency. 

It  has  been  so  common  to  ascribe  all  the  quickening  of 
interest  in  religious  and  philanthropic  enterprises,  which 
characterizes  the  closing  years  of  the  last  century  and  the 
opening  years  of  this,  to  the  evangelical  revival  and  the 
Methodist  movement  growing  out  of  it,  that  it  may  be 
well  to  consider  how  little  real  progress  had  been  made 
in  the  more  than  fifty  years  of  revived  Christian  life  in 
England  which  preceded  the  new  beginning  of  the  Sun- 
day-school, in  comparison  with  the  progress  made  in  the 
twenty  years,  or  even  in  the  ten,  which  immediately  fol- 
lowed that.  It  was  just  after  Raikes  had  started  his  first 
Sunday-school,  that  John  Wesley  published  his  "  Estimate 
of  the  Manners  of  the  Present  Time,"  in  which  he  said  of 
England  generally :    "  A  total  ignorance  of  God  is  almost 

'  Raikes's  letter  to  the  Rev.  Bowen  Thickens,  cited  in  Gregory's  Robert 
Raikes,  p.  95. 


Il6  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

universal  among  us.  The  exceptions  are  exceeding  few, 
whether  among  the  learned  or  unlearned.  High  and  low, 
cobblers,  tinkers,  hackney  coachmen,  men  and  maid  ser- 
vants, soldiers,  sailors,  tradesmen  of  all  ranks,  lawyers, 
physicians,  gentlemen,  lords,  are  as  ignorant  of  the  Creator 
of  the  world  as  Mahometans  or  pagans."^  A  little  later 
he  testified  again:  "  There  is  not,  on  the  face  of  the  earth, 
another  nation  (at  least,  that  we  ^ever  heard  of)  so  per- 
fectly dissipated  and  ungodly  [as  England] ;  not  only  so 
totally  '  without  God  in  the  world,'  but  so  openly  setting 
him  at  defiance.  There  never  was  an  age,  that  we  read  of 
in  history,  since  Julius  Csesar,  since  Noah,  since  Adam, 
wherein  dissipation  and  ungodliness  did  so  generally  pre- 
vail, both  among  high  and  low,  rich  and  poor."  ^  With 
all  fair  qualifyings  of  these  extreme  statements  of  Mr. 
Wesley,  it  is  evident  that  there  was  much  to  be  done  in 
the  way  of  bringing  the  community  to  a  good  measure 
of  religious  life  and  of  common  morality,  at  the  time 
when  the  Sunday-school  element  became  a  factor  in  refor- 
matory agencies,  after  more  than  fifty  years  of  the  evan- 
gelical revival  of  the  eighteenth  century.^ 

Lord  Mahon  presents  a  very  dark  picture  of  English 
social  life  at  the  time  of  which  Mr.  Wesley  here  speaks, 
and  he  points  to  the  Sunday-school  beginning  as  marking 
a  new  era  of  national  reform.*  Green,  speaking  of  the 
days  which  followed  the  close  of  the  American  Revolu- 
tion, just  after  the  beginning  of  Raikes's  work,  says:  "It 
was  then  [not  before,  but  the}i\  that  the  moral,  the  philan- 
thropic, the  religious  ideas  which  have  moulded  English 

1  Works,  XL,  152.  2  7^/,/^  yi.,  424. 

^  See  Wesley's  Sermons:  Sermon  94,  ^  3  (  Works,  VII.,  77). 

*  Hist,  of  E7ig.,  VII.,  333  t. 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  I IJ 

society  into  its  present  shape,  first  broke  the  spiritual 
torpor  of  the  eighteenth  century."^  And  again  Green 
says  specifically:  "The  Sunday-schools  established  by 
Mr.  Raikes  of  Gloucester  .  .  .  were  the  beginning  of 
popular  education  " — [in  England].^  Lecky,  also,  refers  to 
"the  establishment  of  Sunday-schools"  as  "an  important 
step"  in  the  line  of  "a  revived  interest  in  [popular]  edu- 
cation."* As  showing  the  national  and  social  prominence 
which  was  quickly  gained  by  the  Sunday-school  system  as 
a  factor  in  the  forces  of  Christian  civilization,  it  is  a  note- 
worthy fact  that  Adam  Smith,  with  his  clear  perception  of 
the  needs  and  the  hope  of  society  as  such,  declared  of  this 

1  Hist,  of  the  English  People,  IV.,  272.  »  Ibid.,  IV.,  273  f. 

'  Hist,  of  Eng.,  VI.,  277.  At  a  centenary  celebration  under  the  auspices 
of  the  Church  of  England  Sunday  School  Institute,  in  London,  in  July,  1880, 
the  Rev.  J.  F.  Kitto,  in  his  formal  address  from  the  Institute,  to  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury,  said  on  this  point:  "  It  is  very  difficult  for  us  in  this 
day  accurately  to  estimate  the  effect  which  has  been  produced  upon  our 
nation  by  the  attention  which  was  so  forcibly  directed  at  that  time  [in  1780] 
to  the  necessity  of  the  education  of  the  young.  We  believe  that  it  is  scarcely 
too  much  to  say  that  the  system  of  national  elementary  education  which  has 
been  called  into  existence  during  the  last  hundred  years  owes  its  origin  in 
great  measure  to  the  persevering  efforts  of  those  who  were  instrumental  in 
the  foundation  of  Sunday-schools.  .  .  .  One  hundred  years  ago  it  was  a  rare 
thing  for  the  child  of  a  laboring  man  to  be  able  even  to  read,  but  to-day  we 
can  point  to  the  gratifying  fact  that,  amongst  all  the  20,000  scholars  who  are 
assembled  here  to-day,  by  Your  Grace's  invitation,  there  is  probably  not  one 
who  is  in  a  similar  condition  of  ignorance.  Nor  is  this  the  only  or  the  chief 
result  of  the  formation  of  Sunday-schools.  The  seed  of  Christian  faith  and 
Christian  enterprise  which  was  sown  by  Robert  Raikes  and  his  associates  has 
now  borne  fruit  in  almost  every  parish  in  our  land,  and  its  influence  has 
spread  far  beyond  the  confines  of  our  own  country,  or  the  limits  of  our  own 
Church;  so  that  wherever  our  Christianity  extends,  the  importance  of  the 
Sunday-school  is  recognized  as  the  nursery  and  training-school  of  the  church  ; 
and  the  zeal  and  activity  of  thousands  of  voluntary  teachers  have  been  en- 
listed in  its  behalf"  (  Thirty-seventh  Annual  Report  of  the  Church  of  England 
Sunday  School  Institute,  1880-81,  p.  47  f.). 


Il8  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

agency  that  "  no  plan  has  promised  to  effect  a  change  of 
manners,  with  equal  ease  and  simplicity,  since  the  days 
of  the  apostles  "^ — when,  in  fact,  its  prototype  was  in  its 
pristine  prominence.  And  the  pessimistic  Malthus  was 
moved,  about  the  same  time,  to  utter  a  warning  against 
the  nation's  leaving  the  entire  education  of  the  common 
people  to  the  Sunday-schools? 

John  Wesley  recognized  the  potency  of  the  new  Sun- 
day-school agency,  and  he  immediately  incorporated  it 
into  the  policy  of  his  great  undertaking.  To  this  fact  the 
Methodist  Church  organization  owes  a  large  measure  of  its 
success,  if  indeed  it  is  not  indebted  to  it  for  its  continu- 
ance as  well  as  for  its  steady  growth.  "  I  verily  think," 
wrote  Wesley,  "these  Sunday-schools  are  one  of  the 
noblest  specimens  of  charity  which  have  been  set  on  foot 
in  England  since  the  time  of  William  the  Conqueror."  ^ 
Again  he  wrote  to  his  brother  Charles:  "I  am  glad  you 
have  set  up  Sunday-schools.  ...  It  is  one  of  the  noblest 
institutions  which  has  been  seen  in  Europe  for  some  cen- 
turies, and  will  increase  more  and  more,  provided  the 
teachers  and  inspectors  do  their  duty."  *  And  well  he 
might  think  thus.  About  the  time  of  the  opening  of 
Raikes's  first  Sunday-school,  more  than  fifty  years  from 
the  beginning  of  the  great  revival,  the  aggregate  mem- 
bership of  the  Methodist  communion,  all  the  world  over, 
was  a  little  more  than  fifty  thousand.'  Within  four  years 
from  the  public  announcement  by  Raikes  of  the  begin- 
ning of  his  work  in  Gloucester,  the  Sunday-schools  of  the 

1  Cited  in  a  letter  of  Robert  Raikes  to  William  Fo.x,  in  Lloyd's  Sketch  of 
Robert  Raikes,  p.  55.  ^  See  Lecky's  Hist,  of  Ens^.,  VI..  278. 

*  Tyerman's  Life  of  Wesley,  III.,  522.  *  Ibid.,  III.,  604. 

5  Ibid.,  III.,  620. 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  1 1 9 

United  Kingdom  had  a  membership  of  about  a  quarter  of 
a  million  ;^  and  from  that  time  onward  the  progress  of  the 
Methodists,  as  of  wellnigh  every  other  body  of  Protestant 
Christians,  was  accelerated  beyond  all  precedent. 

At  first  the  Sunday-school  had  paid  teachers,  and  its  in- 
struction was  mainly  limited  to  lessons  in  reading,  and  in 
the  Church  of  England  Catechism.  Afterward  it  secured 
voluntary  teachers,^  and  its  lessons  included  the  memo- 
rizing of  Bible  verses.  Gradually  its  plans  and  methods 
were  expanded,  until  they  comprised  the  systematic  study 
of  the  Bible  in  limited  lessons,  week  by  week,  with  a 
classification  of  scholars  in  accordance  with  their  ages 
and  attainments.  And  with  this  progress  in  the  character 
of  the  school  itself,  there  was  a  corresponding  progress 
in  its  influence  in  the  direction  of  securing  new  agencies 
for  the  extension  of  Christian  knowledge. 

That  the  Sunday-school  was  not  only  tfie  beginning 
of  the  English  system  of  public  school  education,  but  that 
step  by  step  that  system  was  prompted  and  promoted  by 
the  success  of  Sunday-school  teaching,  is  evident  by  the 
records  of  history.^  Penny  postage  in  Great  Britain,  with 
all  that  it  has  done  for  the  diffusion  of  intelligence  in  that 
realm,  is  shown  to  have  been  specifically  urged  and  advo- 
cated with  a  view  to  its  bearing  on  the  newly  extended 

1  See  Raikes's  letter  to  Mrs.  Harris,  in  Pray's  Hist,  of  Szmday-schools,  p.  147. 

'It  has  been  generally  understood  that  the  beginning  of  voluntary  teaching 
was  in  Bolton,  England,  in  1785 ;  but  at  the  Raikes  Centenary  in  London,  in 
1880,  Sir  Charles  Reed  claimed  this  honor  for  Oldham,  England.  He  said  : 
"  In  Oldham  the  first  voluntary  teacher  Vk'as  found  who  declined  to  receive 
money,  and  undertook  the  charge  of  classes  in  schools  for  nothing"  {The 
Sunday  School  Chronicle,  for  July  i,  1880,  p.  354). 

'See  Watson's  The  First  Fifty  Years  of  the  Sunday-school,  pp.  25-40; 
107-112;   118-125. 


I20  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

correspondence  between  teachers  and  scholars  in  the 
Sunday-schools,  and  between  those  who  had  been  taught 
to  read  in  the  Sunday-school.^  The  British  and  Foreign 
Bible  Society  —  first  of  the  societies  of  that  character, 
which  in  the  aggregate  have  now  sent  out  into  the  world 
more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  millions  of  Bfbles  and 
Testaments,  in  at  least  two  hundred  and  eighty  languages 
and  dialects — was  immediately  the  result  of  an  effort  to 
provide  Bibles  and  Testaments  for  those  who  had  learned 
in  the  Sunday-school  to  use  them,  and  to  wish  for  them.'^ 
The  Religious  Tract  Society,  of  London,  was  likewise 
started  in  order  to  furnish  good  reading  to  those  who, 
through  the  Sunday-school,  had  become  interested  in 
good  reading.^  It  need  hardly  be  added  that  the  new 
popular  interest  in  the  religious  training  of  the  young 
and  the  ignorant  in  our  home  communities,  and  the  new 
appreciation  of  the  vital  truths  of  Christianity  through 
personal  Bible-study,  were  a  cause  of  that  larger  interest 
in  the  world's  religious  needs  which  led  to  the  new  foreign 
missionary  movement  for  the  evangelizing  of  the  world, 
which,  in  fact,  began  with  the  organization  of  the  London 
Missionary  Society  in  1795,  and  of  the  Church  Missionary 
Society  in  1799 — less  than  twenty  years  after  the  begin- 
ning of  Raikes's  Sunday-school  work.* 

In  short,  it  is  evident  that  the  great  religious  decline 
of  the  eighteenth  century  was  consequent  on  a  lack  of 
the  divinely  designated  church -school  agency  for  the 
winning  and  training  of  the  young ;  and  that  the  great 

1  See  The  \Lo7idon'\  Sunday-school  Union  :  Its  History  and  Work,  p.  128. 

2  See  Watson's  The  First  Fifty  Years  of  the  Sunday-school,  pp.  64-68. 

3  See  The  Jubilee  Memorial  of  the  Religious  Tract  Society,  p.  11  f. 

*  See  Lecky's  Hist,  of  Eng.,  VI.,  275. 


ITS  MODERN  RE  VIVAL.  1 2 1 

religious  advance  of  the  nineteenth  century  is  consequent 
upon  a  revival  and  expansion  of  that  agency,  with  its 
legitimate  influence  and  outcome.  To  the  reintroduction 
of  that  feature  into  the  Protestant  Church  polity  we  owe, 
under  God,  the  chief  measure  of  whatever,  in  our  religious 
life  and  methods  of  work,  make  and  mark  this  century — 
as  superior  to  the  centuries  which  it  follows. 

A  recent  tribute  to  the  vastness  of  the  work  wrought 
through  the  Sunday-school  in  Great  Britain,  rendered 
by  so  competent  and  impartial  an  observer  as  Mr.  John 
Bright,  is  worthy  of  notice  just  here.  In  a  public  address, 
only  a  few  months  ago,  Mr.  Bright  said:  "In  my  mind, 
the  Sunday-schools  have  been  the  foundation  of  much  of 
what  is  good  amongst  the  millions  of  our  people.  I  my- 
self am  of  opinion  that — I  will  not  say  no  attempt  has 
been  made,  but — no  attempt  has  been  at  all  successful  to 
show  the  enoimous  gain  which  our  people  have  received 
from  the  institution  of  Sunday-schools,  and  from  the  zeal 
and  continuity  by  which  they  have  been  supported.  .  .  . 
I  believe  that  there  is  no  field  of  labor,  no  field  of  Chris- 
tian benevolence,  which  has  yielded  a  greater  harvest  to 
our  national  interests  and  national  character  than  the  great 
institution  of  Sunday-schools."^  And  in  this  estimate  of 
this  evangelizing  and  educating  agency,  Mr.  John  Bright 
but  echoes  back,  as  the  verdict  of  history,  the  careful 
measure  of  its  power  which  was  given  by  Mr.  Adam 
Smith,  a  century  ago,  as  an  utterance  of  prophecy. 

And  now,  instead  of  pursuing  the  historical  course  of 
religious  progress  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  where  the 
Sunday-school  in  its  revived  form  first  had  prominence, 

'  See  The  Church  Sunday  School  Magazine,  for  July,  1887,  p.  5/2  f. 


122  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

it  will,  perhaps,  be  better  to  look  at  the  influence  of  the 
modern  Sunday-school  movement  here  in  America,  as 
illustrative  of  the  share  which  that  movement  has  con- 
tributed to  the  religious  progress  of  this  century  both 
here  and  abroad.  The  conditions  of  American  life  tend, 
in  fact,  to  bring  into  clearer  exhibit  the  relative  power  of 
the  Sunday-school  as  the  agency  of  agencies  in  the  pro- 
motion of  this  progress. 

America  has  been  practically  saved  to  Christianity  and 
the  religion  of  the  Bible  by  the  Sunday-school.  No 
country  has  ever  been  held  permanently  to  that  religion 
in  its  perennial  vitality,  without  the  aid  of  the  Sunday- 
school  or  its  substantial  equivalent.  And  no  country 
was  ever  more  difficult  of  such  holding,  or  was  more 
obviously  dependent  on  this  means  of  its  holding,  than 
America.  At  the  time  when  the  Sunday-school  was  intro- 
duced as  a  practical  power  in  the  American  community, 
unbelief  and  error  were  sweeping  away  the  barriers  of 
sound  religious  conviction  in  the  older  portions  of  our 
country ;  while  an  incoming  flood  of  godless  immigration 
was  threatening  to  ingulf  hopelessly  all  vestiges  of  Chris- 
tianity as  a  vitalizing  force  in  the  newer  communities 
of  our  extending  border  population.  The  new  agency 
practically  stayed  the  progress  of  error  and  unbelief,  and 
rescued  the  children  alike  of  those  who  had  lapsed  from 
the  faith,  and  those  who  had  never  had  faith.^ 

It  is  difficult  to  realize  at  this  distance  of  time  the  change 

^  For  the  credit  of  introducing  the  modern  Sunday-school  into  the  United 
States,  there  are  many  claimants.  It  would  seem  that  in  several  places,  on 
this  side  of  the  ocean,  a  Sunday-school  which  was  started  within  a  few  years 
after  Raikes's  beginning  in  Gloucester,  was  continued  for  a  time,  and  then 
given  up,  without  leaving  an  immediate  successor.  Thus  a  Sunday-school  was 
organized,  under  the  direction  of  Bishop  Asbury,  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Thomas 


JTS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  1 23 

which  the  Sunday-school  quickly  wrought  in  America,  in 
the  prevailing  sentiment  of  parents,  teachers,  and  pastors, 
concerning  the  religious  needs  and  the  religious  capabili- 
ties of  children,  as  objects  of  church  effort  and  of  church 
care;  and  the  advance  which  was  speedily  made  in  popu- 
lar Bible  knowledge  in  the  community  generally.  A  help 
to  the  understanding  of  the  case,  so  far,  may  be  found  in 
the  expressions  of  joy  over  this  change  on  the  part  of 
those  who  were  personal  observers  of  it. 

In   1 8 14,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lyman  Beecher  preached  and 

Crenshaw,  in  Hanover  County,  Virginia,  in  1786 ;  yet  but  little  is  known  of  it 
save  its  beginning.  A  minute  in  favor  of  organizing  Sunday-schools  was 
adopted  by  the  Methodist  Conference  in  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  in 
February,  1790;  yet  no  record  is  found  of  Sunday-schools  organized  in  con- 
sequence of  this  minute.  In  December,  1790,  a  meeting  was  called  in  Phila- 
delphia to  consider  the  importance  of  this  work ;  and  early  in  January,  1791, 
the  First-Day  or  Sunday  School  Society  was  formed,  for  the  purpose  of 
securing  religious  instruction  to  poor  children  on  Sunday.  This  society  has 
continued  in  operation  to  the  present  day  ;  yet  its  schools,  like  those  of  Robert 
Raikes,  had  paid  teachers  during  the  earlier  years  of  its  operation.  In  1791 
a  Sunday-school  was  started  in  Boston  ;  in  1793  one  was  started  in  New  York 
City,  by  Katy  Ferguson,  a  colored  woman;  in  1794  one  was  started  in  Pat- 
erson,  New  Jersey;  in  1797  Samuel  Slater  secured  the  organization  of  one 
in  Pawtucket,  Rhode  Island;  in  1800  one  was  started  in  Pittsburgh,  Penn- 
sylvania. In  1803  a  Sunday-school  was  gathered  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Divie 
Bethune,  in  New  York  Qty;  and  subsequently  other  schools  were  begun  by 
them.  Mrs.  Bethune  was  a  daughter  of  Mrs.  Isabella  Graham.  Mr.  Bethune 
had  seen  something  of  Raikes's  work  in  England,  and  the  New  York  school 
was  started  in  imitation  of  that.  In  the  same  year  with  this  beginning  in 
New  York,  a  Sunday-school  was  begun  in  Portsmouth,  New  Hampshire ; 
the  year  following,  one  was  started  in  Baltimore,  Maryland.  In  1809  a  sys- 
tematic Sunday-school  movement  was  organized  in  Pittsburgh,  Pennsylvania. 
The  Rev.  Robert  May,  from  London,  gave  a  new  start  to  Sunday-schools,  in 
Philadelphia,  in  1811,  which  proved  a  beginning  of  permanent  progress.  A 
local  union  for  Sunday-school  work  was  organized  in  New  York  in  1816; 
another  in  Boston  the  same  year ;  and  another  in  Philadelphia  in  1817. 
These  societies  became  the  nucleus  of  The  American  Sunday  School  Union,  3 
national  society,  organized  in  1824. 


1 24  ^  T//E  SUN  DA  Y-  SCHO  OL  : 

published  his  soon  famous  sermon  on  the  Waste  Places 
of  New  England/  in  which  he  drew  a  gloomy  picture  of 
the  religious  destitution  in  the  field  of  his  moral  out- 
look; while  at  the  same  time  he  outlined  the  possibilities 
o*f  good  to  the  community  through  yet  unattempted  en- 
deavors at  systematic  religious  instruction  by  the  Church 
in  the  homes  of  church-members  and  beyond.  Fourteen 
years  after  this  (in  1828)  Dr.  Beecher  republished  that 
sermon ;  and  he  added  to  it  this  note,  concerning  his  ideal 
plans  of  reform  in  the  direction  of  the  church  instruction 
of  children:  "Since  this  was  written,  the  system  of  Sab- 
bath-schools has  more  than  realized  all  that  at  the  time 
[of  the  sermon  writing]  had  been  asked  or  thought."^ 
A  year  later  than  this  testimony  by  Dr.  Beecher,  Presi- 
dent Francis  Wayland,  in  a  sermon  before  the  American 
Sunday  School  Union,  expressed  his  wonder  over  the 
progress  in  the  understanding  of  children,  as  well  as  in 
their  instruction,  within  the  period  of  a  single  decade. 
"Who  would  have  supposed,"  he  said,  "that  the  memory, 
the  judgment,  the  understanding,  and  the  conscience,  of  so 
young  a  child  [as  was  then  under  infant-school  instruc- 
tion] were  already  so  perfectly  formed  and  so  susceptible 
of  improvement?"  "And  if  I  be  not  much  mistaken," 
he  added,  "the  instruction  now  given  to  infants,  in  these 
invaluable  nurseries  [the  infant-schools],  is  more  philo- 
sophical, and  does  more  toward  establishing  correct  intel- 


*  Although  the  sermon  had  immediate  reference  to  Connecticut,  Dr.  Beecher 
said  that  his  remarks  concerning  that  state  were,  "  with  slight  modification, 
applicable  to  New  England  generally  ;  "  and  it  will  hardly  be  questioned  that, 
in  that  day,  the  average  moral  standard  in  New  England  was  at  least  up  to 
that  of  the  country  elsewhere. 

2  Sermons  Delivered  on  Various  Occasions,  p.  laS. 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  12$ 

lectual  and  moral  habits,  than  was  attainable,  when  I  was 
a  boy,  by  children  of  twelve  or  fourteen  years  of  age,  in 
grammar  schools  of  no  contemptible  estimation."' 

In  similar  thought,  the  Rev.  Dr.  E.  N.  Kirk,  who 
was  born  in  1802,  thanked  God,  in  his  maturer  life,  that 
the  dark  days  of  his  childhood  were  "passed,  passed  for- 
ever," those  days  "  when  indoctrination  and  restraint  were 
the  highest  aims  of  parents,  preachers,  and  teachers,  and 
[when]  amusement  [was]  the  chief  aim  of  authors,  who 
wrote  for  children!"^  while  the  Church  of  Christ  seemed 
to  have  no  faith  in  the  possibility  of  an  intelligent  Chris- 
tian life  by  a  child  as  a  child.  As  showing  that  these 
men  did  not  misrepresent  the  ignorance  of  the  child- 
nature  which  prevailed  among  Christians  of  the  age 
before  Sunday-schools,  it  may  be  mentioned  that  good 
Dr.  Doddridge,  who  was  foremost  in  his  time  as  a  worker 
in  behalf  of  children,  coolly  said  in  a  published  sermon, 
with  reference  to  a  child  of,  say,  five  years  old:  "Without 
a  miracle,  it  cannot  be  expected  that  much  of  the  Chris- 
tian scheme  should  be  understood  by  these  little  creatures, 
in  the  first  dawning  erf  reason,  though  a  few  evangelical 
phrases  may  be  taught  [to  them],  and  sometimes,  by  a 
happy  kind  of  accident,  may  be  rightly  applied."  •''  And 
here  in  America,  as  late  as  the  years  1828-30,  one  of  the 
subjects  of  serious  discussion  in  our  religious  magazines 
was,  "  Can  Children  Reason?  "  In  support  of  the  affirma- 
tive of  this  question,  there  were  proffered  the  answers 

^  Sermon  on  Encouragements  to  Religious  Effort  (1830),  p.  12. 
'  Address  to  the  Convention  of  Sunday-school  Teachers,  Pittsfield,  June  24, 
1863,  p.  6. 

'  Sermon  on  Submission  to  Divine  Providence  in  the  Death  of  Children 
[1736].    {:^ermons  and  Religious  Tracts,  I.,  89.) 


1 26  ■  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL : 

to  questions  given  by  children  of  nine,  ten,  and  twelve 
years  old,  which  went  to  show  "that  children  are  capable 
of  thinking  and  reasoning  for  themselves."^ 

The  Rev.  Albert  Barnes,  in  1850,  looked  back  upon 
the  dearth  of  religious  reading  for  children  in  the  days 
of  his  boyhood  (he  was  born  at  the  close  of  last  century) 
in  contrast  with  the  extensive  literature  for  childhood 
provided  by  and  for  the  Sunday-school  in  its  first  half- 
century  of  progress.  All  that  he  could  have  obtained 
for  his  boyhood's  reading,  had  he  had  limitless  means  at 
his  command,  "would,"  he  said,  "have  required  little 
more  than  Franklin  paid  for  his  whistle;"  but  now  he 
found  available  such  treasures  in  that  line  as  had  no 
parallel  in  all  history  in  the  rapidity  of  their  invaluable 
accumulating.^  And  even  before  this  review  of  the  half- 
century's  progress  by  Mr.  Barnes,  the  Rev.  Dn  Isaac 
Ferris,  afterwards  Chancellor  of  the  University  of  the  City 
of  New  York,  declared,  in  1834,  that  the  candidates  for  the 
theological  seminary  coming  from  the  instructions  of  the 
Sunday-school  at  that  time,  had  "  knowledge,  on  several 
branches,  in  advance  of  the  instruction  of  the  seminary 
itself; "  because  of  the  new  helps  available  in  the  Sunday- 
school  to  the  understanding  of  Jewish  antiquities,  of  the 
geography  and  the  manners  and  customs  of  Bible  lands, 
of  ecclesiastical  history,  and  of  Scripture  analysis.^ 

With  a  better  understanding  of  the  religious  capabili- 

'  See  American  Sabbath  School  Afagazine,  and  The  Sabbath  School  Visitant, 
for  1828-29. 

*  Sermon  on  Christianity  as  Applied  to  the  Mind  of  a  Child  in  the  Sunday- 
school  (1850),  pp.  38-42. 

'  An  Appeal  to  Ministers  of  the  Gospel  in  Behalf  of  Sunday-schools  (1834), 
p.  28  f. 


ITS  MODERN  RE  VIVAL.  1 2  7 

ties  of  childhood,  there  came,  throughout  the  country, 
an  increase  of  wise  care  for  the  children,  in  the  home,  in 
the  school,  and  from  the  pulpit.  Children  were  gathered 
into  the  church-fold  in  numbers  unprecedented.  Bible 
knowledge  was  increased  among  children,  and  by  means 
of  children.  Revivals  of  religion  had  new  frequency  and 
new  power;  and  the  ordinary  ministrations  of  the  pulpit 
reached  intelligent  hearers,  where  before  there  had  been 
only  hearers  who  were  not  sufficiently  instructed  to  com- 
prehend the  forms  of  truth  declared  to  them.  Thus  a 
careful  observer  of  the  progress  of  events,  writing  in  one 
of  the  prominent  English  religious  magazines,  ascribed  ^ 
the  peculiar  power  of  the  great  revivals  in  America  from 
1828  to  1832  to  the  superior  methods  of  Bible  study  in 
American  Sunday-schools.  The  progress  of  infidelity  was 
checked,  the  sweep  of  error  was  stayed.  Instead  of  losing 
ground  steadily,  in  its  rdative  hold  upon  the  increasing 
population,  evangelical  religion  began  to  make  gain.  So 
it  was  in  the  older  portions  of  our  country.  So  it  was 
in  the  newer  communities,  where  the  pioneer  Sunday- 
school  kept  pace  with  the  extremest  advance  of  immigra- 
tion, reaching  and  teaching  the  children  of  parents  who 
of  themselves  would  never  have  sought  the  place  of 
religious  worship  or  teaching. 

Just  a  few  illustrative  instances  of  the  work  which  has 
been  going  on  in  all  parts  of  our  country  for  the  past 
three-quarters  of  a  century,  may  aid  in  bringing  to  mind 
the  current  of  events  during  that  period.  In  the  con- 
gregation of  the  old  First  Church  in  Norwich  Town, 
Connecticut,  some  seventy  years  since,  a  young  girl  came 
out  from  her  family — the  first  of  its  members  to  do  so 
— and  confessed    her   child -like  trust  in  her   Saviour, 


128  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

Learning  something  of  the  Sunday-school  work  of  Divie 
Bethune,  in  New  York  City/  she  gathered  a  Httle  Sunday- 
school  in  the  galleries  of  her  home  church.  The  church 
authorities  deemed  this  a  desecration  of  God's  day  and  of 
God's  house,  and  forbade  lierthe  use  of  the  galleries.  She 
withdrew  with  her  little  charge  to  a  neighboring  school- 
house.  Public  sentiment,  including  the  expressed  opinion 
of  her  own  pastor,  secured  her  exclusion  from  that  build- 
ing also.^  She  tried  again  on  the  church  steps;  and  she 
maintained  a  footing  there  until  the  gallery  was  again 
opened  to  her,  and  her  Sunday-school  had  gained  its 
right  to  live.  The  father  and  the  mother  of  that  little 
girl  followed  her  into  the  church -fold.  Every  other 
member  of  her  family  came  there  also.  She  became  the 
wife  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Myron  Winslow,  as  a  missionary 
worker  in  Ceylon.  Three  of  her  sisters  also  became 
missionaries.  One  of  her  brothers  died  just  as  he  entered 
the  ministry.  Another  brother  went  West  as  a  home 
missionary,  and  gathered  a  church  and  Sunday-school 
there.  A  daughter  of  hers  labored  as  a  missionary's  wife 
in  India,  and  died  leaving  several  sons,  two  of  whom 
afterward  entered  the  ministry.  On  the  occasion  of  the 
fiftieth  anniversary  of  the  organization  of  the  Sunday- 
school  she  had  started,  I  heard  the  pastor  of  her  church 
pay  a  glowing  tribute  to  her  memory,  as  he  read  aloud 
the  names  of  twenty-six  ministers  and  missionaries  who 


1  See  p.  123,  ante. 

'  Nearly  thirty  years  ago  I  was  told,  on  the  testimony  of  an  eye-witness, 
that  when  the  old  pastor  of  the  church  passed  the  school-house  where  this 
young  teacher  had  her  Sunday-school  for  a  season,  he  shook  his  ivory-headed 
cane  toward  the  building,  and  said  in  honest  indignation,  "  You  imps  of  Satan, 
doing  the  Devil's  worki  " 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  1 29 

had  already  gone  out  from  that  Sunday-school  as  a 
centre  of  Bible-study  and  of  Christian  influence.  And 
that  incident  is  a  fair  illustration  of  the  work  wrought 
by  the  Sunday-school,  in  the  family,  in  the  church-fold, 
and  in  the  community  at  large,  in  the  field  of  our  older 
churches,  since  the  Sunday-school  obtained  its  new  foot- 
hold in  America. 

Some  years  ago  I  attended  the  one  hundred  and  fiftieth 
anniversary  of  the  First  Church  in  Pomfret,  Connecticut. 
Pomfret  is  one  of  the  many  country  parishes  of  New 
England  which  have  lost  much  of  their  ancient  promi- 
nence, as  local  centres,  by  the  drawing  away  of  population 
and  business  into  the  valleys,  along  the  mill-streams  and 
the  railway  lines.  The  pastor  of  the  Pomfret  church,  in 
his  historical  discourse,  showed  that  during  the  last  half- 
century  of  the  period  commemorated,  the  average  con- 
gregation had  dwindled  from  about  ten  or  twelve  hun- 
dred, to,  say,  a  hundred  and  fifty  or  two  hundred  persons. 
This  would  have  been  a  discouraging  feature  in  the 
church  history,  but  for  the  Sunday-school  addition  to  the 
power  of  that  waning  congregation.  Prior  to  the  settle- 
ment of  the  pastor  who  organized  the  Sunday-school  of 
that  church,  it  would  seem  that  there  had  never  been 
any  children  received  into  full  church-membership  there. 
But  he  turned  his  attention  to  the  little  ones,  and  it  was 
said  at  his  funeral  that  "the  children  of  the  Sabbath- 
school  loved  him  as  they  did  their  own  eyes."  And 
now,  with  the  Sunday-school  in  continued  operation 
from  his  day  to  the  present,  there  had  been  more  addi- 
tions to  the  membership  of  the  church  in  the  last  fifty 
years  than  in  the  first  one  hundred;  and  this  with  a 
congregation  of  only  one-fifth  or  one-sixth  of  its  former 

9 


I30  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

size.^  As  a  listener  to  that  historical  discourse  said 
dryly :  "  It  would  seem  that  while  fewer  people  went  to 
church  in  Pomfret,  more  went  to  heaven,  after  the  Sunday- 
school  was  started  there."  Nor  is  that  Pomfret  record  a 
better  one  than  we  should  have  a  right  to  look  for  in  a 
church  with,  as  over  against  a  church  without,  a  Sunday- 
school  in  such  a  town  as  Pomfret. 

Within  my  own  day,  and  within  my  own  range  of 
personal  observation,  a  young  layman  went  into  one  of 
the  back  streets  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  and  gathered 
a  Sunday-school  of  less  than  thirty  scholars.  He  has 
continued  in  charge  of  that  Sunday-school  to  the  present 
time.  Its  membership  is  now  more  than  two  thousand. 
A  church  which  was  organized  on  the  basis  of  that 
Sunday-school  has  a  membership  of  upwards  of  seven- 
teen hundred,  while  another  flourishing  church  has  been 
established  as  one  of  its  offshoots.  And  similar  instances 
of  church  organization  on  the  basis  of  Sunday-school 
beginnings  could  be  pointed  out  in  every  large  city 
of  America. 

In  our  newer  communities  a  very  large  proportion  of 
all  the  churches  organized  within  the  past  half-century 
have  had  their  beginning  in  a  Sunday-school — without 
the  influence  of  which  a  church  could  neither  have  been 
formed  nor  have  been  continued  in  such  a  neighborhood. 
And  the  magnitude  of  this  pioneer  Sunday-school  work, 
with  its  results  of  church  gathering,  is  one  of  the  marvels 
of  the  century.  Take  a  specimen  incident  from  its  history 
for  an  example.  Some  thirty  years  ago  a  little  girl  was  a 
scholar  in  a  pioneer  Sunday-school,  in  a  new  community 

1  The  i^oth  Anniversa7y  of  the  Organization  of  the  First  Church  of  Christ 
in  Pomfret,  Conn.,  (1866,)  pp.  31-33,  55,  61,  62. 


ITS  MODERN  RE  VIVAL.  1 3 1 

in  Illinois.  She  induced  her  father  to  come  with  her  to 
that  Sunday-school.  He,  although  a  man  of  strong  native 
qualities,  was  wholly  uneducated  —  even  to  the  limited 
extent  of  a  public-school  training.  He  was  lame,  and  he 
had  a  serious  impediment  in  his  speech.  There,  in  the 
Sunday-school,  he  submitted  himself  in  child-like  trust 
to  the  Saviour.  Then,  full  of  love  for  that  Saviour,  and 
of  gratitude  for  the  Sunday-school  agency  which  had 
brought  to  him  a  knowledge  of  the  Saviour,  he,  Stephen 
Paxson,  went  out  and  essayed  the  gathering  of  other 
Sunday-schools  in  needy  neighborhoods  beyond.  He 
became  a  missionary  of  the  American  Sunday-school 
Union,  and  in  that  service  he  gathered  more  than  twelve 
hundred  Sunday-schools  with  an  aggregate  membership 
of  sixty  thousand  scholars  and  teachers.  Scores  of 
churches  were  established  on  the  basis  of  those  Sunday- 
schools;  and  when  he  entered  into  rest  one  of  his  sons 
was  continuing  and  widely  extending  his  work,  which  now 
goes  on  with  increasing  volume  as  the  years  pass  by.^ 

In  this  way  it  is  that  the  Sunday-school  has  become 
the  prime  church  agency  for  pioneer  evangelizing,  for 
Bible  teaching,  and  for  the  religious  instruction  and  care 
of  children,  in  every  denomination  of  Protestant  Chris- 
tians in  America,  as  also  among  Roman  Catholics  and 
Jews,  and  even  among  such  an  anomalous  religious  body 
as  the  Mormons.  From  an  aggregate  membership  of  a 
few  hundreds  at  the  beginning  of  this  century,  it  has 
come  to  include,  within  the  evangelical  Protestant  bodies 
alone,  from  eight  to  ten  millions,  or  nearly  one-fifth  of 
the  entire  population  of  the  United  States.     Meanwhile 

1  See  A  Fruitful  Life  (a  memoir  of  Stephen  Paxson). 


1 3  2  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

its  influence  is  manifest,  in  the  fact  that  while,  from  1800 
to  1880,  the  aggregate  population  of  this  country  has 
nearly  ten-folded,  the  number  of  communicants  in  the 
evangelical  Protestant  churches  has  nearly  thirty-folded.^ 

Observers  from  other  lands  are,  perhaps,  readier  than 
ourselves  to  recognize  the  peculiar  value  of  the  Sunday- 
school  in  a  country  like  our  own,  without  a  state  church, 
without  the  possibility  of  systematic  religious  instruction 
in  the  public  schools,  and  with  so  large  a  proportion  of 
irreligious  families  coming  to  us  from  across  the  ocean, 
to  swell  our  population  year  by  year.  For  example,  on 
the  occasion  of  our  Centennial  Exposition  in  1876,  the 
French  Government  had  here  a  Commission,  studying 
the  principles  and  methods  of  primary  instruction  in  the 
United  States.  Two  years  later  a  voluminous  report  on 
the  subject  was  published  by  the  French  Government,  as 
prepared  by  Monsieur  F.  Buisson,  the  president  of  that 
Commission;  and  it  was  evident  that  no  department  of 
primary  instruction  in  this  country  had  impressed  that 
careful  observer  as  more  important  and  noteworthy  than 
that  of  the  Sunday-school.  "The  Sunday-school,"  he 
said,  "is  not  an  accessory  agency  in  the  normal  economy 
of  American  education;  it  does  not  add  a  superfluity;  it 
is  an  absolute  necessity  for  the  complete  instruction  of 
the  child.  Its  aim  is  to  fill  by  itself  the  complex  mission 
which  elsewhere  is  in  large  measure  assigned  to  the 
family, the  school,  and  the  church."  "All  things,"  again 
he  said,  "  unite  to  assign  to  this  institution  a  grand  part 
in  the  American  life.  Most  diverse  circumstances  co- 
operate to  give  it  an  amplitude,  a  solidity,  and  a  popu- 

1  Dorchester's  Problem  of  Religious  Progress,  p.  545. 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  133 

larity,  which  are  quite  unique.  For  denominational  lead- 
ers, for  those  whom  above  all  the  interests  of  their  church 
preoccupy,  the  Sunday-school  is  pre-eminently  the  in- 
strument of  propagandism."  ^  And  this  is  a  fairer  view 
of  the  case  than  that  which  is  held  by  many  who  have 
had  even  better  opportunities  than  M.  Buisson  of  study- 
ing the  Sunday-school  in  its  workings  and  in  its  influence 
here  in  America.  Professor  Emile  de  Laveleye,  of  the 
University  of  Liege,  Belgium,  in  his  work  on  popular 
education,  published  a  few  years  before  M.  Buisson's 
report,  spoke  with  no  less  warmth  of  the  Sunday-school 
system  of  the  United  States,  in  its  power  and  in  its  im- 
portance. "  The  Sunday-school,"  he  said,  "  is  one  of  the 
strongest  foundations  of  the  republican  institutions  of  the 
United  States."^ 

Nearly  as  many  teachers  and  scholars  are  in  the  Prot- 
estant Sunday-schools  of  the  United  States  to-day,  as  are 
in  ail  the  rest  of  the  Protestant  world  besides,  although 
the  Sunday-school  has  its  recognized  place  and  power  in 
every  quarter  of  the  globe.^     The  circumstances  under 

1  Rapport  stir  l  Instruction  Primaire  a  V Exposition  Universelle  de  Phila- 
delphie,  en  iSyd,  pp.  464-476. 

*  L  'Instruction  du  Peuple,  p.  358. 

3  The  estimated  statistics  of  the  Sunday-school,  in  1887,  as  gathered  by  Mr. 
E.  Payson  Porter,  of  Philadelphia,  show,  in  round  numbers,  for  the  United 
States,  one  million  teachers,  and  eight  million  scholars;  and,  for  the  rest  of 
the  world,  one  million  teachers,  and  eight  and  a  half  million  scholars.  If 
these  teachers  received  the  per  diem  allowance  for  these  services  which  was 
deemed  a  fair  one,  both  in  England  and  America,  in  the  early  days  of  the 
Sunday-school,  the  outlay  for  their  work  would  be,  in  the  United  States 
alone,  about  ^250,000  a  week,  or  513.000,000  a  year,  and  more  than  twice 
that  sum  for  the  world  as  a  whole.  In  the  light  of  this  fact,  there  is  added 
force  in  the  statement  of  Lord  Hatherly,  at  the  Raikes  Centenary,  that  the 
Sunday-school  is  an  evangelizing  instrumentality  by  which  there  are  secured 


134  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

which  it  was  developed  in  this  country,  gave  to  the 
Sunday-school  here  a  distinctive  character,  as  an  agency 
both  of  evangelizing  and  of  church-training,  which  makes 
it,  in  a  peculiar  sense,  a  pattern  for  imitation  elsewhere. 
Hence  it  is  that  the  American  Sunday-school  as  an  insti- 
tution has  found  a  foot-hold  in  most  of  the  countries  of 
Europe,  and  is  gaining  in  membership  and  in  confidence 
there,  with  the  best  results  to  the  Church  of  Christ  and 
to  the  community  at  large. 

It  is  now  about  twenty -five  years  since  Mr.  Albert 
Woodruff,  a  Christian  layman  of  Brooklyn,  New  York, 
while  a  traveler  in  Germany,  was  moved  to  undertake  the 
starting  of  a  Sunday-school  on  the  American  plan,  with 
voluntary  teaching  by  laymen  and  women,  in  the  German 
capital.  He  saw  that  with  all  that  was  done  for  the  reli- 
gious instruction  of  German  children,  through  the  family, 
through  the  parochial  school,  as  a  part  of  the  system  of 
public  education,  and  through  perfunctory  catechetical 
teaching  in  the  churches,  there  was  still  a  sad  lack  of 
popular  Bible -study  as  Bible -study,  and  of  voluntary 
Bible  teaching  by  Christian  laymen  and  women ;  and  that 
the  consequence  of  this  lack  showed  itself  there,  as  it 
shows  itself  under  like  circumstances  everywhere,  in  the 
growth  of  skepticism  and  error  and  unbelief  throughout 
the  community — even  in  the  higher  institutions  of  learn- 
ing. From  that  humble  beginning  the  foreign  Sunday- 
school  work  of  America  has  come  to  be  no  mean  factor 
in  the  evangelizing  activities  and  in  the  edifying  labors 

"  visiting  agents,  and  good  agents,  and  well-instructed  agents,  with  a  mini- 
mum of  expense  and  a  maximum  of  benefits."  Who  would  think  of  com- 
plaining of  the  trifling  expense  to  the  churches  of  the  Sunday-school  of  to-day, 

in  view  of  the  priceless  value  of  its  unpaid  workers? 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  135 

of  the  world  at  large.  The  London  Sunday-school  Union 
has,  from  the  first,  co-operated  heartily  with  American 
workers  in  this  new  movement.^  And  now,  in  Germany 
alone,  there  are  some  three  thousand  Sunday-schools, 
comprising,  say,  thirty  thousand  teachers  and  three  hun- 
dred thousand  scholars.  "  The  work  is  now  spread  all 
over  Germany,"  writes  one  of  its  more  prominent  pro- 
moters ;  "  and  all  clergymen  who  are  not  rationalists  have 
Sunday-schools.  Even  the  latter  have  opened  children's 
divine  services,  without  classes;  [mainly]  because  they 
cannot  find  teachers  [in  sufficient  number]  who,  out  of 
love  for  Jesus,  would  devote  themselves  to  this  work."  ' 
Not  only  in  Germany,  but  in  wellnigh  every  country 
of  continental  Europe,  the  modern  Sunday-school  has 
been  making  steady  progress  within  the  past  quarter  of 
a  century,  from  the  impulse  and  under  the  watchful  over- 
sight of  Christian  workers,  banded  together,  in  the  United 
States  and  in  England,  for  the  purpose  of  promoting  the 
extension  and  improvement  of  this  means  of  evangeliza- 
tion and  of  religious  training.  Meanwhile,  in  every  for- 
eign field  where  American  or  English  missionaries  are 
at  work,  the  Sunday-school  is  growing  in  prominence 
as  an  agency  of  church  extension  and  of  church  upbuild- 
ing. And  thus,  in  a  truer  sense  than  ever  before,  the  dis- 
ciples of  our  Lord  are  laboring,  all  the  world  over,  in 

1  At  the  Raikes  Centenary,  in  London,  in  June,  1880,  Mr.  A.  Benham, 
chairman  of  the  Continental  Committee  of  the  London  Sunday  School  Union, 
said  on  this  point :  "  '  Honor  to  whom  honor  '  is  an  apostolic  injunction,  and 
right  cheerfully  do  we  accord  to  our  highly  esteemed  friend  and  fellow-worker, 
Mr.  Albert  Woodruff,  of  Brooklyn,  the  honor  of  having  been  the  pioneer  of 
this  great  work.  By  him  was  laid  the  foundation  on  which  has  been  erected 
the  superstructure  ;  and  for  what  has  been  done  up  to  the  present  time  we 
thank  God,  who  has,  in  his  providence,  vouchsafed  so  rich  a  blessing  on  the 


1^,6  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 


accordance  with  the  requirements;  of  his  pre-ascension 
injunction:    "Go,  make  scholars  of  all  nations." 

Nor  has  the  progress  of  the  Sunday-school  here  in 
America  been  less  marked  and  important  in  the  measure 
and  character  of  its  instruction  than  in  the  growing 
magnitude  of  its  numbers.  From  an  unintelligent  and 
unrestricted  memorizing  of  Bible  verses  as  the  highest 
attainment  of  its  earliest  Bible-study,  it  passed,  as  did  the 
Sunday-school  in  Great  Britain,  to  the  special  study  of 
limited  lessons  from  the  Bible  text,  week  by  week;  and 
finally  to  the  systematic  study  of  the  entire  Bible  as 
the  Bible,  in  a  series  of  carefully  selected  lessons  for  a 
continuous  seven  years'  course,  which  is  common  to 
Sunday-schools  generally,  under  the  designation  of  the 
International  Lesson  Course.  And  now,  under  the  influ- 
ence of  this  course  of  instruction,  the  best  and  freshest 
work  of  the  best  and  strongest  Bible  scholars  on  both 
sides  of  the  Atlantic  is  made  available  as  a  help  to  the 
ordinary  study  of  the  average  teacher  in  his  preparation 
for  the  weekly  teaching  of  his  scholars. 

The  International  lessons  were  formally  inaugurated 
at  the  beginning  of  1873,  under  a  recommendation  from 
a  purely  voluntary  and  an  undenominational  assemblage 
of  Sunday-school  workers,  in  a  national  convention  for 
the  United  States;  that  recommendation  being  subse- 
quently approved  by  Sunday-school  workers  in  Canada 
and  in  England.^     At  the  start,  not  a  single  denomination 

labors  already  expended  on  this  work"  {The  Sunday  School  Chronicle,  iox 
July  3, 1880,  p.  368).  The  American  workers  in  this  movement  are  associated 
under  tlie  designation  of  The  Foreign  Sunday  School  Association,  with  its  head- 
quarters at  the  home  of  Mr.  Woodruff,  130  State  Street,  Brooklyn,  New  York. 

1  The  best  available  sketch  of  the  movement  which  resulted  in  the  Inter- 


ITS  MODERN  RE  VIVAL.  1 3  7 

was,  as  a  denomination,  in  favor  of  the  International 
lesson  plan.  Wellnigh  every  great  religious  publishing 
house  was  opposed  to  it;  nor  could  any  one  of  those 
houses  adopt  it  without  rendering  useless  valuable  plates 
and  copyrights  of  scries  of  lesson-helps.  On  all  sides 
there  was  more  or  less  of  reluctance  to  accept  the  new 
system  in  all  its  essential  features,  and  from  some  quarters 
the  opposition  to  it  was  outspoken  and  prolonged.  Hence 
that  system  secured  an  established  position  only  through 
its  tested  merits,  and  in  response  to  a  popular  conviction 
and  demand  which  could  not  be  overborne,  nor  success- 
fully resisted. 

One  of  the  chief  points  in  discussion  at  the  time  of  the 
adoption  of  this  lesson  system,  and  which  is  still  a  point 
in  its  criticism,  concerns  the  wiser  method  of  selecting 
passages  from  the  Bible,  in  order  to  its  thorough  and 
systematic  study.  Four  plans  had,  severally,  their  earnest 
and  conscientious  advocates.  First,  a  system  of  Bible 
doctrines,  as  indicated  by  a  common  creed  of  evangelical 
Christians,  or  as  outlined  in  the  principal  catechisms  of 
the  churches,  was  preferred  by  many  as  a  basis  of  sound 
Bible  teaching.  Second,  personal  duties,  God-ward  and 
man-ward,  were  thought  by  not  a  few  to  be  the  most 
important  basis  of  practical  Bible  teaching.  Third,  the  life 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  prophecy  and  in  history, 
especially  as  its  main  features  are  indicated  in  the  seasons 
of  the  Church  year,  was  deemed  by  a  multitude  the 
fitting  basis  of  reverent  Bible  teaching.  Fourth,  the  Bible 
itself  as  a  book,  as  the  Book  of  books,  with  its  exhibit 
of  doctrines,  and  of  duties,  and  of  the  life  of  Christ,  was 

national  lesson  plan  is  Gilbert's  The  Lesson  System  ;  the  Story  of  its  Origin 
and  Inau'Turation. 


138  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

more  generally  looked  upon  as  pre-eminently  the  basis  of 
systematic  Bible  teaching;  and  this  latter  plan  it  was  that 
was  adopted  as  the  plan  of  the  International  lesson  system. 

Steadily  this  system  of  Bible-study  has  won  its  way  in 
the  world.  Almost  without  exception  the  great  denomi- 
national publishing  houses  have  made  its  lessons  the 
basis  of  their  course  of  instruction.  While  the  Episco- 
palians have  adopted  it  less  generally  than  any  other 
portion  of  the  Protestant  community,  it  is  used  in  many 
of  their  Sunday-schools,  and  by  a  large  proportion  of  the 
Sunday-schools  of  other  Protestant  Christians  in  the 
United  States  and  abroad,  including  the  foreign  mis- 
sionary stations  of  the  world.  While  it  is  not  easy  to 
ascertain  the  number  of  persons  who  are  using  these 
lessons  regularly,  it  can  safely  be  said  that  at  least  from 
five  to  seven  millions  are  now  engaged,  week  by  week, 
in  the  study  of  the  same  passage  from  God's  Word,  in 
accordance  with  the  plan  of  the  International  lesson 
course.  And  so  it  has  come  to  pass  that  at  the  very 
time  when  the  Bible  as  a  single  whole  is  most  severely 
assailed  by  its  opponents  from  without  the  Christian  fold, 
and  most  seriously  questioned  by  its  critics  from  within 
that  fold,  a  larger  number  of  persons  than  were  ever  before 
engaged  in  its  careful  study  are  becoming  intelligently 
acquainted  with  its  contents  as  the  inspired  record  of  a 
revelation  from  God. 

A  vast  body  of  biblical  literature  has  been  created  to 
meet  the  demands  of  the  new  army  of  Bible  students.  So 
long  as  there  was  no  one  phase  of  biblical  truth  which 
centred  the  interest  of  the  community  generally  at  any 
given  period,  there  was  no  justification  in  publishing,  in 
periodical  or  in  book  form,  special  helps  to  the  elucida- 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  1 39 

tion  of  any  one  phase  above  another  of  such  truth.  But 
when  that  centring  of  popular  interest  was  secured  through 
the  International  lesson  course,  an  immense  constituency 
was  already  assured  to  any  publication  in  the  line  of  the 
studies  of  that  course.  Authors  and  publishers  alike  were 
prompt  to  recognize  this  new  state  of  things,  and  they 
were  aroused  and  stimulated  to  its  meeting.  Fresh  aids 
to  Bible-study  were  multiplied,  and  the  demand  for  them 
increased  even  faster  than  their  supplies.  Commentaries, 
cyclopedias,  works  of  biblical  research,  were  called  for 
to  an  extent  before  undreamed  of.  Important  works  by 
European  specialists  which  would  not  have  been  thought 
of  for  popular  demand  in  America,  were  now  issued  on 
this  side  of  the  water  in  rival  editions;  and  the  library  of 
the  average  country  clergyman,  or  of  the  more  intelligent 
lay  teacher,  can  now  be  supplied  with  volumes  which 
otherwise  could  have  found  a  place  only  in  the  better 
furnished  of  our  city  libraries. 

The  foremost  scholars  of  the  foremost  universities  of  the 
world  have  been  summoned  to  bear  a  part  in  the  elucida- 
tion or  the  illustration  or  the  application  of  the  current 
lesson  themes.  Thus,  for  a  single  example,  the  honored 
President  of  Yale  University  is  now,  and  for  some  time 
has  been,  guiding  critically  the  New  Testament  studies  of 
more  than  a  hundred  thousand  Sunday-school  teachers, 
week  by  week,  in  the  line  of  these  International  lessons. 
For  several  years  before  him,  the  venerable  ex-President 
Woolsey  led  similarly  in  this  line  of  guidance;  while  the 
universities  of  Oxford  and  of  Leipsic  and  of  Neufchatel 
from  over  the  ocean,  have  contributed  of  their  scholarship 
to  swell  the  current  of  Bible  learning  for  the  regular  sup- 
ply of  teachers  in  our  American  Sunday-schools. 


I40  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

Popular  magazines  and  secular  newspapers  now  feel 
the  necessity  of  recognizing  the  field  and  scope  of  the 
International  lessons  in  the  catalogue  of  their  ordinary  or 
of  their  special  attractions.  The  very  atmosphere  of  the 
Christian  community  is  surcharged  with  the  spirit  of  these 
lessons,  through  their  united  study  and  teaching.  Biblical 
theology  as  biblical  theology  has  a  new  and  a  firmer  hold 
upon  the  minds  and  hearts  of  teachers  and  of  taught.  And 
the  lines  of  division  between  schools  of  dogmatists,  and 
between  denominations  of  believers,  grow  dimmer  in  the 
brighter  glow  of  the  great  truths  of  the  Bible  which  Bible 
students  rejoice  in  together,  as  they  sit  side  by  side  under 
the  teachings  of  their  common  Redeemer.^ 

Many  a  young  layman,  in  one  of  our  better  conducted 
American  Sunday-schools,  trained  under  the  influence  of 
this  system  of  International  lesson  study,  is  to-day  more 
familiar  with  the  Bible  as  the  Bible,  than  was  the  average 
young  minister  of  a  generation  or  so  ago.  One  of  the 
more  prominent  pastors  in  the  United  States,  himself  not 
yet  past  middle  life,  said  to  me,  not  long  ago,  as  he  spoke 
of  a  young  man,  still  under  eighteen  years  of  age,  who 
had  received  his  chief  learning  in  Bible  knowledge  under 
the  influence  of  the  International  lessons,  and  who  was 
now  to  enter  college :  "  He  knows  more  of  the  Bible, 
when  he  enters  college,  than  I  knew  of  it  when  I  left  the 
theological  seminary ;  for  he  has  had  advantages  in  Bible- 
study  such  as  we  knew  nothing  of  in  Sunday-school,  in 
college,  or  in  the  seminary,  in  my  days  there."  Yet  that 
pastor  was  the  son  of  a  New  England  clergyman,  a  gradu- 

1  It  is  a  noteworthy  fact  that  the  increased  desire  for  Christian  union,  and 
the  increase  of  apparent  readiness  for  its  attainment,  has  corresponded  in  its 
growth  and  progress  with  the  spread  of  this  system  of  common  Bible-study. 


ITS  MODERN  REVIVAL.  I41 

ate  of  one  of  the  choicest  Christian  colleges  of  New 
England,  and  an  alumnus  of  one  of  the  more  prominent 
theological  seminaries  outside  of  New  England.  More- 
over, it  was  because  he  had  kept  himself  abreast  of  the 
modern  Sunday-school  movement,  with  its  mighty  sway 
of  systematic  Bible-study,  and  knew  its  practical  power, 
that  he  spoke  as  he  did  of  those  facts  with  which  many 
another  pastor  might  be  familiar,  but  is  not. 

It  is  even  now  recognized  as  a  serious  question,  whether 
a  young  man  who  is  in  preparation  for  the  ministry  can 
afford  to  be  outside  of  the  direct  influence  of  this  Bible- 
studying  movement  during  his  undergraduate  years  in 
college  and  in  seminary;  and  whether  the  provisions  in 
these  schools  of  preparation  are  yet  such  as  to  send  from 
them  into  the  ministry  men  furnished  with  Bible  knowl- 
edge, and  with  a  knowledge  of  methods  of  Bible  teaching, 
in  that  measure  which  will  bring  them  abreast,  at  the  start, 
of  the  Bible  students  whom  they  are  likely  to  find,  in  the 
communities  to  which  they  go,  as  the  product  of  the 
agencies  and  influences  now  operative  outside  of  the  pre- 
paratory schools.  And  it  is  in  the  line  of  the  solving  of 
this  question  that  plans  for  Bible-study  in  the  college 
curriculum  are  being  discussed  with  earnestness  among 
instructors  in  this  University,  and  beyond  it,^  and  that 
the  Faculty  of  Yale  Divinity  School  has  shown  its  readi- 

'  There  was  never  a  time  when  the  systematic  study  of  the  English  Bible 
had  as  large  prominence  as  to-day,  among  the  better  class  of  students  in 
American  colleges  generally  Such  a  gathering  as  the  "  College  Students' 
Summer  School  and  Encampment  for  Bible  Study,"  under  the  direction  of 
Mr.  Moody,  at  Northfield,  Massachusetts,  (where  from  three  hundred  to 
six  hundred  of  the  brighter  students  of  the  foremost  American  colleges  pass 
several  weeks  in  this  occupation,  year  by  year,)  would  have  been  an  impos- 
sibility twenty  years  ago,  or  earlier. 


142  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 

ness,  by  inviting  this  course  of  lectures,  to  make  available 
to  its  students  whatever  facts  or  suggestions  may  be 
brought  to  bear  upon  it  out  of  the  experiences  or  the 
study  of  any  one  who  has  given  it  special  attention. 

And  this  is  the  record  and  the  aspect  of  the  modern 
Sunday-school  movement.  In  the  latter  third  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  Bible-study  and  Bible  teaching  were 
a  minor  factor  in  the  activities  of  the  Christian  Church, 
and  the  tide  of  vital  godliness  was  at  a  very  low  ebb  on 
the  shores  of  all  Christendom.  In  the  latter  third  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  Bible-study  and  Bible  teaching  have 
a  prominence  never  before  known  in  the  world's  history, 
and  vital  godliness  is  shown  and  felt  with  unprecedented 
potency  in  the  life  and  progress  of  mankind.  This  change 
is  due  to  God's  blessing  on  the  revival  and  expansion  of 
the  church  Bible-school  as  his  chosen  agency  for  Chris- 
tian evaneelizing;  and  Christian  traininsj. 


LECTURE   IV. 

THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL:    ITS  INFLUENCE 
ON  THE  FAMILY. 


IV. 

THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL:    ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE 
FAMILY. 

Supposed  Rivalry  of  Sunday-school  and  Family  Influence. — The 
Family,  God's  Primal  Training  Agency. — The  Church-school 
Divinely  Ordained  as  a  Complement  of  the  Family. —  The 
Christian  Church  a  Larger  Family. —  Family  Religion  Prior 
to  the  Modern  Sunday-school  and  Afterwards,  in  England. — 
In  Ireland. —  In  Scotland. —  In  Wales. — In  the  United  States. — 
God's  Agencies  Never  Conflict. —  Family  Religion  Pivots  on 
Sunday-school  Efficiency. —  Cause  of  the  Popular  Error  at  this 
Point. — Mythical  Boundary  of  the  Good  Old  Time. —  Claims  of 
the  Sunday-school  under  the  Great  Commission. 

In  considering  the  nature  and  the  history  of  the  Sun- 
day-school as  an  agency  of  the  Church  of  Christ  for  the 
discipling  and  training  of  the  young,  it  would  not  be  right 
to  ignore  an  objection  to  it,  or  a  fear  concerning  it,  which, 
from  its  new  beginning  in  its  present  form,  has  had  promi- 
nence in  the  minds  of  its  warmest  well-wishers,  as  well 
as  of  many  of  its  severest  critics;  and  that  objection  or 
fear  is,  that  a  natural  tendency  of  the  Sunday-school  is 
in  the  direction  of  releasing  parents  from  a  sense  of  their 
responsibility  for  the  religious  instruction  and  care  of 
their  children ;  and  that,  as  a  consequence  of  this  ten- 
dency, the  work  and  influence  of  the  Sunday-school  are 
liable  to  bear  adv^ersely  on  the  family — as  God's  primal 

lo  145 


146  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

training  agency  for  the  human  race.  I  say  it  would  not  be 
right  to  ignore  this;  for  if,  indeed,  this  objection  be  vahd, 
or  this  fear  be  well  founded,  the  Sunday-school  neither 
can  have,  nor  ought  to  have,  the  intelligent  approval  of 
the  lovers  of  God's  order  in  the  plans  of  God's  ordering. 

When  God  created  man,  God  ordained  the  family  for 
the  good  of  man  and  for  the  glory  of  God,  The  first 
human  pair  were  set  as  the  founders  and  the  illustrators 
of  the  family  for  all  time  to  come.  "  And  God  created 
man  in  his  own  image,  in  the  image  of  God  created  he 
him ;  male  and  female  created  he  them.  And  God  blessed 
them:  and  God  said  unto  them.  Be  fruitful  and  multiply, 
and  replenish  the  earth,  and  subdue  it ;  and  have  do- 
minion."^ "He  which  made  them,"  says  our  Lord, 
"  from  the  beginning  made  them  male  and  female,  and 
said,  .  .  .  The  twain  shall  become  one  flesh.  So  that 
they  are  no  more  twain,  but  one  flesh." ^  "And  where- 
fore one?"  asks  and  answers  the  prophet  Malachi,  "  He 
sought  a  godly  seed,"^  The  family  was  designed  of  God 
for  the  uprearing  of  children  in  and  for  the  service  of  God, 

"  Lo,  children  are  an  heritage  of  the  Lord : 
And  the  fruit  of  the  womb  is  his  reward. 
As  arrows  in  the  hand  of  a  mighty  man, 
So  are  the  children  of  youth. 
Happy  is  the  man  that  hath  his  quiver  full  of  them."* 

The  divine  injunction  to  parents  was  and  is:  "These 
words  which  I  command  thee,  .  .  .  shall  be  upon  thine 
heart:  and  thou  shalt  teach  them  diligently  unto  thy 
children,  and  shalt  talk  of  them  when  thou  sittest  in  thine 
house."  ^     "  Command  your  children  to  observe  to  do  all 

1  Gen.  1 :  27,  28.  ^  Matt.  19  :  4-6.  *  Mai.  2 :  15. 

*  Psa.  127 :  3-5.  ^  Deut.  6 :  6,  7. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  1 47 

the  words  of  this  law.  For  it  is  no  vain  thing  for  you ; 
because  it  is  your  Hfe."^ 

The  institution  thus  ordained  of  God  for  a  specific 
work  must  not  be  hindered  in  its  mission,  nor  can  it 
safely  be  rivaled  or  slighted.  Any  agency  subsequently 
introduced  for  the  religious  instruction  and  care  of  the 
young,  which  claims  a  divine  authorization,  must  be  able 
to  prove  its  efficiency  in  the  line  of  unqualified  co-oper- 
ation with  the  family,  or  yield  its  claim  to  divine  authori- 
zation. "  For  God  is  not  a  God  of  confusion,  but  of 
peace." ^  His  plans  never  conflict.  "All  things"  which 
he  ordains  "tuork  together  (or  good"^  in  his  cause.  If 
the  Sunday-school  is  in  conflict,  or  even  in  rivalr}^, 
with  the  family  in  its  sphere,  then  the  Sunday-school 
is  not  worthy  of  confidence  or  of  approval.  So  far  there 
ought  not  to  be  any  question  among  Christian  think- 
ers or  Christian  workers.  Now,  what  are  the  facts  in 
the  case? 

That  the  objection,  or  the  fear,  referred  to,  has  been 
and  still  is  of  wide-spread  prominence,  is  as  unmistakably 
true  as  is  the  fact  that  proof  of  the  well  founding  of  that 
fear  should  be  destructive  of  the  good  name  of  the 
Sunday-school.  Nearly  seventy  years  ago  Dr.  Thomas 
Chalmers,  in  mention  of  "  the  more  familiar  objections 
which  have  been  alleged  against  Sabbath-schools,"  said  : 
"  There  is  none  which  floats  so  currently,  or  is  received 
with  greater  welcome  and  indulgence,  than  that  they 
bear  with  adverse  and  malignant  influence  on  family 
religion — that  they  detach  our  young  from  the  natural 
guardianship  of  their  own  family,  and  come  in  place  of 

^  Deut.  32  :  46,  47.  *  I  Cor.  14:  33.  '  Rom.  8  :  28. 


148  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

that  far  better  and  more  beautiful  system  which  at  one 
time  obtained  over  the  Lowlands  of  Scotland."^ 

As  in  Scotland,  so  in  America,  the  Sunday-school  was 
challenged  as  endangering  the  responsibility  of  the  family 
for  the  religious  training  of  the  young.  President  Heman 
Humphrey,  of  Amherst  College,  for  example,  in  a  sermon 
-before  the  American  Sunday  School  Union,  in  1831,  cau- 
tioned parents  "against  devolving  the  whole  business  of 
religious  education  upon  others,"  especially  upon  Sunday- 
school  teachers.  "  I  greatly  fear,"  he  said,  "  that  even 
many  Christian  parents  are  in  fault  here ;  and  I  do  know 
that  some  devoted  teachers  have  almost  doubted,  on  this 
account,  whether  their  labors  were  of  much  use."^  Two 
years  later  the  Rev.  Dr: — afterwards  Bishop — Henshaw, 
in  a  similar  advocacy  of  the  Sunday-school  cause,  said: 
"  This  species  of  charitable  effort  has  been  objected  to 
as  interfering  with  the  domestic  relation,  and  relaxing 
the  sacred  tie  by  which  parents  and  children  are  bound 
together."  And  quite  naturally  he  added :  "  If  this 
objection  were  valid  and  well  sustained,  it  would  be 
impossible  upon  Christian  principles  to  vindicate,  much 
more  to  advocate,  earnestly,  the  system  in  question."^ 

While  urging  afresh  the  claims  of  the  Sunday-school 
work  in  America,  in  1845,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Archibald  Alex- 
ander said :  "  I  have  recently  heard  it  strongly  objected  to 
the  whole  system  of  Sunday-schools,  that  their  tendency 
is  to  prevent  family  instruction,  by  furnishing  parents  with 
an  apology  for  neglecting  the  instruction  of  their  own 

I  Select  Works,  X.,  207. 

*  Sermon  on  The  Way  to  Bless  and  Save  our  Country,  p.  18. 

'  Sermon  on  The  Usefulness  of  Sunday-schools,  p.  9. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  149 

children.  It  is  alleged  that  formerly  it  was  the  custom 
of  pious  parents  to  spend  their  Sabbath  evening  in  cate- 
chising and  instructing  their  children  and  domestics;  but 
now  this  has  become  very  rare;  and  the  delinquency  is 
ascribed  to  the  Sabbath-school  system,  which  takes  the 
work  out  of  the  hands  of  the  parents,  and  gives  it  to  irre- 
sponsible and  often  incompetent  hands."  ^ 

In  1850,  the  Rev.  Albert  Barnes  dwelt  with  warmth  on 
the  possible  peril  to  the  family  from  the  Sunday-school. 
"  From  the  nature  of  the  case,"  he  said,  "  there  is  danger 
that  the  true  design  of  the  Sunday-school  will  be  mis- 
understood, abused,  and  perverted;  that  it  will  send  back 
an  influence  into  the  family  which  will  wholly  defeat  one 
of  the  great  ends  of  the  domestic  organization.  This 
danger  arises  from  the  impression  which  is  likely  to  be 
left  on  the  minds  of  parents,  that  they  can  thus  transfer 
their  oblifrations  to  train  their  children  in  the  doctrines 
and  duties  of  religion  to  others."^ 

As  lately  as  1881,  Bishop  Talbot,  of  Indiana,  said:^ 
"A  Sunday-school  of  the  modern  pattern  may  not  inaptly 
be  defined  to  be  an  institution  to  save  unfaithful  parents 
and  sponsors  trouble,  ...  In  its  present  religious  aspect, 
it  usurps  the  functions  both  of  the  family  and  of  the 
church."  Of  the  former  days,  in  contrast  with  these,  he 
said:  "In  the  mother  Church  [of  England],  when  Sun- 
day-schools were  begun,  there  was  no  room  for  them, 
and  no  need  of  them  as  religious  organizations.  Every 
parent,  himself  religious,  took  care  to  instruct  his  chil- 

*  Suggestions  in  Vindication  of  Sunday-schools  (enlarged  edition),  p.  40, 

'  Sermon  on  Christianity  as  Applied  to  the  Mind  of  a  Child,  p.  29. 

'  In  his  Convention  Address. 


1 50  THE  SUNDA  Y- SCHO OL : 

dren  in  religion.  Every  pastor  claimed  them  as  a  part 
of  his  flock  whom  he  was  to  feed  according  to  Christ's 
command.  They  were  catechised  by  him  '  openly  in  the 
church,'  and  trained  in  all  Church  doctrine  and  practice, 
as  well  as  in  Bible  truth.     Now  all  this  is  changed." 

And  so,  all  the  way  down  to  the  present  time,  prominent 
representatives  of  the  different  branches  of  the  Church 
of  Christ  in  America  have  been  sounding  the  note  of 
warning  against  allowing  the  Sunday-school  to  usurp 
the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  the  family,  or  have 
been  giving  expression  to  the  fear  that  the  family  has 
suffered,  or  is  suffering,  or  is  likely  to  suffer,  from  a 
tendency  of  the  Sunday-school  in  this  direction.  On 
the  face  of  it,  it  would  seem  that  there  must  be  some 
basis  in  fact  or  in  sound  reason  for  all  this  assumption 
on  the  part  of  intelligent  and  thinking  men;  yet  I  do 
not  hesitate  to  affirm,  and  to  undertake  to  prove,  that 
the  teachings  of  Scripture,  the  lessons  of  history,  and  the 
logical  consideration  of  the  principles  involved,  unite 
to  show  its  utter  baselessness ;  to  show,  indeed,  on  the 
contrary,  that  the  Sunday-school  neither  has  had,  does 
have,  nor  can  have,  any  other  influence  on  the  family, 
than  that  of  quickening,  promoting,  and  improving  the 
measure  and  the  methods  of  home  religious  instruc- 
tion. And  to  the  proof  of  this  proposition  I  now  in- 
vite attention. 

The  Bible  record  shows,  that  God  in  his  wisdom  or- 
dained and  established  the  church-school,  for  which  the 
Sunday-school  now  stands,  to  meet  and  supply  an  exist- 
ing lack  in  the  family;  and  to  be — while  not  a  substitute 
for,  nor  yet  a  mere  supplement  to  —  a  complement  of 
the  family  in  the   religious   instruction  and  training  of 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  151 

children.  All  history  gives  evidence  that  just  in  propor- 
tion as  the  church-school,  of  earlier  or  of  later  times, 
has  flourished  or  has  declined,  family  religion  has  waxed 
or  has  waned.  And  an  examination  of  the  principles 
which  are  operative  in  the  case  would  indicate  that  this 
could  not  be  otherwise. 

The  family  was  the  first  agency  ordained  of  God  for 
the  religious  training  of  the  race;  and  it  stood  alone  as 
an  agency  for  that  work  until  the  Flood.  But  the  family, 
by  itself,  so  far  failed  of  filling  its  place,  and  of  accom- 
plishing its  mission,  that  God  chooses  to  say  that  it 
repented  him  that  he  had  made  man;*  and  he  swept  the 
race  from  being,  save  a  single  household,  which  he  spared 
to  bridge  over  the  chasm  of  destruction.  And  when  God 
began  anew,  with  a  peculiar  people,  he  gave  to  his  Church 
a  measure  of  responsibility  in  the  sphere  of  the  family, 
while  he  lessened  in  no  degree  the  responsibility  of  the 
family  as  previously  imposed  on  it.  And  from  that  time 
onward  one  of  the  chiefest  duties  of  parents  has  been 
to  secure  to  their  children  the  teachings  of  the  church- 
school,  as  well  as  of  the  home. 

Abraham  was  a  teacher  before  he  was  a  parent;^  as 
witness  his  three  hundred  and  eighteen  "instructed"* 
retainers;  and  he  was  a  better  parent  for  being  a  teacher. 
Of  the  days  of  Moses,  it  is  declared  in  Deuteronomy,* 
that  the  Lord's  command  for  all  Israel,  at  certain  stated 
periods,  was:  "Assemble  the  people,  the  men  and  the 
women  and  the  little  ones,  and  thy  stranger  that  is  within 
thy  gates,  that  they  may  hear,  and  that  they  may  learn, 

'  Gen.  6:  5-7.  2  Comp.  Gen.  14  :  14;  15  :  1-6;  18  ;  19. 

'  See  note  on  tiiis  point,  at  p.  6  f.,  ante.  •*  Deut.  31  :  9-13. 


1 5  2  THE  SUN  DA  Y-  SCHO  OL  : 

and  fear  the  Lord  your  God,  and  observe  to  do  all  the 
words  of  this  law;  and  that  their  children,  which  have 
not  known,  may  hear,  and  learn  to  fear  the  Lord  your 
God,  as  long  as  ye  live  in  the  land  whither  ye  go  over 
Jordan  to  possess  it."  And  so  it  was  that  the  church- 
school,  in  its  germinal  form,  was  brought  into  the  world, 
to  make  the  family  what  it  should  be. 

Gradually  the  Jewish  system  of  religious  training  was 
developed,  with  its  progress  from  the  service  of  the 
Tabernacle  and  of  the  Temple  to  the  social  services  of 
the  synagogue  and  the  accompanying  exercises  of  Bible- 
study  and  teaching,  until  it  attained  its  crowning  glory 
of  being  God's  agency  for  the  earthly  training  of  the 
Holy  Child  Jesus,  The  importance  of  the  church-school 
as  an  essential  complement  of  the  family  in  those  days, 
in  the  land  of  Palestine,  is  shown  in  the  teachings  of 
the  Rabbis  on  that  subject.  They  tell  it  to  the  credit 
of  King  Hezekiah,  that  he  carried  his  two  sons  on 
his  shoulders  to  the  synagogue  school.^  They  praise 
the  memory  of  Rabba  bar  Hunna  because  he  would  not 
break  his  fast  in  the  morning  till  he  had  taken  his  son  to 
such  a  school.^  The  Talmud  teaches  that  a  father's  duty 
to  lead  his  son  to  school  in  the  morning  precedes  every 
other  duty; ^  and  it  even  suggests  that  a  woman  is  en- 
titled to  a  richer  share  than  man  in  the  Divine  promises, 
because  she  sees  to  it  that  her  children  go  to  the  place  of 
Bible-study.*  Thus  it  was,  for  example,  that  young 
Timothy  with  a  Jewish  mother^  was  sure  not  only  to 
have  home  instruction  in  the  Holy  Scriptures  before  he 

1  See  p.  6,  ante.  *  Qiddushin,  30  a.  '  Ibid. 

*  Berakhoth,  17  «,  *  2  Tim.  i  :  5. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  I  53 

was  five  years  old/  but  to  be  taken  by  his  mother  to  the 
synagogue  Bible-school  after  that  age.  It  was  even  said 
by  the  Rabbis,  that  greater  honor  was  to  be  accorded 
by  a  child  to  his  teacher  than  to  his  parent;  because  the 
child  owes  to  his  father  only  his  life  here,  but  to  his 
teacher  he  owes  wisdom  for  the  life  beyond;^  for,  it  will 
be  observed,  that  in  the  understanding  of  the  Rabbis 
every  school  was  a  Bible-school,  and  every  teacher  was 
a  religious  instructor. 

From  its  inception,  the  Christian  Church  was  recog- 
nized as  in  itself  a  larger  and  holier  family,  the  new  family 
of  families;^  and  no  head  of  a  minor  family  could  be 
really  faithful  to  the  children  of  his  charge  if  he  failed  to 
secure  to  them  the  influence  and  the  teachings  of  the 
greater  Family,  in  which  he  was  himself  but  a  subordi- 
nate member.  Hence,  to  be  a  child  in  a  Christian  family 
was  to  be  entitled  to  membership  in  a  Christian  church 
Bible-school.  Uhlhorn,  in  his  historical  sketches  of  the 
Early  Church,  cites  Basil  and  Chrysostom,  in  proof  of 
the  fact  that  wealthy  Christians  sought  a  place  for  their 
children  in  the  religious  charity  schools  of  the  Church ; 
being  unwilling  that  their  children  should  be  less  favored 
than  those  of  the  poor.*  Without  following  this  matter 
down  through  all  the  Christian  centuries,  it  will  be  suffi- 
cient, perhaps,  to  glance  at  the  condition  of  family  religion 
before  and  since  the  new  beginning  of  the  Sunday-school, 
in  England,  Scotland,  Ireland,  Wales,  and  the  United 
States,  as  illustrative  of  the  tendency  of  the  Sunday- 
school  in  its  influence  upon  the  family. 

»  2  Tim.  3:15.  a  Baba  Metsia,  33  a. 

»  Eph.  2 :  19 ;  3  :  15 ;  4:4-6;  i  Tim.  3  :  15 ;  Heb,  3  :  6. 

*  Christian  Charity  in  the  Ancient  Church,  p.  359. 


154  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

That  the  religious  instruction  of  the  young  was  shame- 
fully neglected  both  in  the  family  and  in  the  church  in 
England,  at  the  time  of  the  introduction  of  Sunday- 
schools  in  their  present  form,  is  obvious  from  the  low 
state  of  religion  and  morals  there,  at  that  period,  as 
already  made  clear.  Lord  Mahon  is  specific  on  this 
point.  For  a  single  illustration  from  the  better  class  in 
the  community,  he  says:  "The  Lord  Lieutenant,  and  for 
very  many  former  years  the  representative,  of  one  of  the 
Midland  shires,  has  told  me  that  when  he  came  of  age 
[at  the  close  of  the  last  century]  there  were  only  two 
landed  gentlemen  in  his  county  who  had  family  prayers; 
whilst  at  the  present  [a  half-century  later],  as  he  believes, 
there  are  scarcely  two  that  have  not."  *  As  indicative  of 
the  general  ignorance  of  the  Bible  in  the  choicer  English 
homes  which  were  then  shut  up  to  family  religious  in- 
struction, Hannah  More  mentions  that  when  Sir  Joshua 
Reynolds  painted  his  now  famous  picture  of  the  child 
Samuel  hearing  the  call  of  God,  he  was  repeatedly  asked 
by  those  of  the  better  class  of  his  visitors,  who  "this  child 
Samuel  "  was.  And  for  herself  Hannah  More  said  of  Sir 
Joshua's  work,  "  I  love  his  great  genius  for  not  being 
ashamed  to  select  his  subjects  from  the  most  unfashion- 
able of  all  books  " — the  Bible.^  It  can  hardly  be  claimed 
that  children  in  the  upper  classes  of  English  society  were, 
at  that  time,  under  such  faithful  religious  instruction  at 
home,  that  the  Sunday-school  at  its  best  would  be  a  poor 
exchange  for  it — if  exchange  there  must  be! 

But  bad  as  things  were  in  the  upper  classes  at  this 
time,  they  were  even  worse  among  the  lower  classes,  in 

1  Hist,  of  Eng.,  VII.,  320. 
'  Memoirs  of  the  Life  and  Con'espondence  of  Hannah  More,  I.,  4.9 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  155 

England.  Hannah  More's  correspondence  with  Wilham 
Wilbcrforce  and  Mrs.  Kennicott  and  others,  describing 
the  various  communities  in  which  she  and  her  friends 
organized  Sunday-schools,  is  in  itself  sufficient  to  prove 
this  fact.^  Of  a  parish  of  two  thousand  persons,  within 
three  miles  of  the  cathedral  city  of  Wells,  she  says :  "  We 
went  to  every  house  in  the  place,  and  found  every  house 
a  scene  of  the  greatest  ignorance  and  vice.  We  saw  but 
one  Bible  in  all  the  parish,  and  that  was  used  to  prop  a 
flower-pot."^  Two  other  villages  visited  by  her  were 
found  even  more  "ignorant  and  depraved  "  than  this  one.^ 
Of  yet  another  village,  where  she  began  a  Sunday-school 
with  more  than  a  hundred  scholars,  she  says,  "There 
were  not  any  boys  or  girls  of  any  age  whom  I  asked, 
that  could  tell  me  who  made  them."*  And  so  it  was 
wherever  she  pursued  her  investigations.  It  is  evident, 
indeed,  that  it  was  not  among  the  lower  classes,  any 
more  than  among  the  upper,  of  English  society,  that 
home  religious  instruction  was  in  such  prominence  a 
centuiy  ago  as  to  be  imperilled  by  the  introduction  of 
the  Sunday-school. 

Moreover,  that  family  religion  has  been  extended  and 
given  power  in  English  homes,  in  corresponding  measure 
with  the  progress  of  the  Sunday-school  in  England,  is  a 
fact  capable  of  explicit  proof  The  average  English 
home  of  to-day  has  in  it  a  religious  atmosphere  wholly 
unknown  to  the  average  English  home  of  a  century  ago. 
Of  the  prevalence  of  family  worship,  for  example,  in 
England,  in  these  later  times,  an  intelligent  American 

1  Memoirs  of  Hannah  More,  Vol.  I.,  ch.  6.  '  Ibid.,  I.,  389. 

» Ibid.,  I.,  388,  *  Ibid.,  I.,  393  f. 


156  THE  SUN  DA  Y-SCHO  OL  : 

observer  has  said:  "Scarcely  a  family,  at  least  none  who 
lays  claim  to  any  degree  of  respectability,  fails  to  have 
family  [religious]  service,  at  least  [one]  part  of  the  day.  .  .  , 
The  servants  come  in,  bringing  with  them  their  Bibles 
and  the  benches  on  which  they  sit.  Men  [even  those] 
who  do  not  'profess  religion,'  as  it  is  understood  among 
us,  seldom  sit  at  meat  without  [saying]  'grace,'  as  it  is 
here  called.  .  .  .  At  her  breakfast-table,  where  the  Queen 
appears  as  the  woman,  and  lays  aside  the  queen,  she  fre- 
quently says  grace."  Such  a  stronghold  has  this  custom 
of  family  worship  now  acquired  in  England,  that,  as  I 
happen  to  know,  an  eminent  author,  who  has  written 
against  the  dogma  of  a  personal  God,  has  retained  the 
habit  of  leading  his  household  in  daily  family  prayers, 
according  to  the  practice  in  which  he  was  trained — after 
the  new  beginning  of  Sunday-schools  in  England.  Of 
the  immediate  cause  of  this  improvement  in  English 
household  religious  life,  with  all  the  gain  that  accom- 
panies it,  so  intelligent  and  impartial  a  historian  as  Lord 
Mahon  says,  unqualifiedly,  after  describing  the  dark  days 
of  a  century  ago:  "Among  the  principal  means  which, 
under  Providence,  tended  to  a  better  state  in  the  coming 
age,  may  be  ranked  the  system  of  Sunday-schools."^ 

There  is  one  peculiar  feature  of  the  Sunday-school 
work  in  England  which  brings  into  yet  clearer  promi- 
nence the  value  of  Sunday-school  teaching  as  a  promoter 
of  family  religious  teaching,  and  which  ought  not  to  be 
omitted  in  this  review.  In  England,  the  children  of  the 
upper  classes  in  society  are  not,  as  a  rule,  in  attendance 
at  the  Sunday-school   as   scholars.      They  are  mainly 

1  Hist,  of  Eng.,  VII.,  333. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  1 57 

dependent  for  their  religious  instruction  on  the  home, 
and  on  the  private  school,  and  on  whatever  of  formal 
catechetical  exercises  apart  from  the  Sunday-school  is 
secured  to  them  in  their  parishes.  Now  how  does  the 
home  religious  instruction  which  at  this  enlightened  day 
they  receive,  compare  with  that  which  is  given  in  families 
from  which  the  children  are  sent  regularly  to  Sunday- 
school?  The  answer  to  this  question  ought  to  throw 
light  on  the  tendency  of  the  Sunday-school  in  its  influ- 
ence on  the  family,  as  a  means  of  religious  instruction. 
And  in  order  to  give  force  to  the  answer,  all  testimony 
on  the  subject  ought  to  come  from  clergymen  and  other 
workers  in  the  Church  of  England  who  are  in  sympathy 
with  the  classes  referred  to,  and  who  are  in  a  measure 
responsible  for  their  right  training. 

Within  the  past  three  or  four  years  a  "symposium" 
on  the  subject  of  "the  religious  instruction  of  the  children 
of  the  upper  classes  "  in  England  extended  through  an 
entire  year,  in  successive  numbers  of  The  Church  Sunday 
School  Magazine,  the  organ  of  the  Church  of  England 
Sunday  School  Institute.^  This  symposium  was  partici- 
pated in  by  clergymen  and  laymen  of  prominence  in  the 
Church  of  England,  and  by  women  whose  position  or 
whose  services  gave  special  weight  to  their  opinions  or 
testimony  on  the  subject  considered.  From  all  that  was 
shown  in  the  course  of  that  discussion,  and  in  articles 
which  followed  it  in  the  same  magazine,  it  is  evident  that 
the  children  of  the  upper  classes,  in  England,  who  are 
dependent  on  home  religious  instruction,  are  lamentably 
lacking  in  those  elements  of  religious  knowledge  which 

'  See  T/ic  Church  Sunday  School Mag'azi/te,  horn  November,  1884,  to  Octo- 
ber, 188  c;. 


1 5  8  THE  SUNDA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

the  Sunday-school  supplies  so  fully;  that  the  contrast 
between  those  who  are  taught  in  the  Sunday-school  and 
those  who  have  only  home  instruction  is  so  great  as  to 
cause  alarm  for  the  consequences  of  the  home-neglected 
and  the  Sunday-school  neglecting  children  of  England's 
upper  classes;  and  that  the  most  hopeful  agency  for 
supplying  the  existing  lack  is  some  fresh  adaptation  of 
the  Sunday-school  idea. 

The  Very  Rev.  the  Dean  of  Winchester  has  recently 
called  attention  to  the  fact  that,  according  to  trustworthy 
statistics,  wellnigh  all  the  children  of  "teachable  age  in 
England  are  in  the  Sunday-school,  "with  the  important 
exception  of  the  well-to-do  classes;"  and  of  the  condition 
of  those  children  who  are  not  yet  reached  by  the  Sunday- 
school  he  says,  illustratively:  "I  was  talking  with  that 
remarkable  woman.  Miss  Beale,  the  other  day.  She  has 
under  her  eye  about  seven  hundred  girls  of  the  gentle- 
folk kind  at  Cheltenham.  She  asked  me  whether  I  was 
aware  of  the  incredible  ignorance  in  religious  matters  of 
the  children  of  the  wealthier  classes,  and  said  she  was 
daily  more  and  more  horrified  at  the  discoveries  she 
made.  And  I  feel  convinced  that  if  we  all  had  her  means 
of  discovering  the  darkness  of  the  land,  we  should  also 
feel  as  much  scared  as  she  did.  We  are  waking  up  to 
our  shortcomings  in  this  field  of  work."  ^  And  another 
clergyman,  who  says  he  agrees  with  English  clergymen 
generally  in  finding  "  a  far  greater  and  clearer  knowledge 
of  the  Scriptures"  among  children  who  come  for  con- 
firmation from  the  Sunday-school,  or  from  the  National 
School,  than  among  those  whose  religious  instruction 

*  See  The  Church  Sunday  School  Magazine  for  March,  1886,  pp.  259-264, 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  159 

has  been  only  at  home  and  in  private  schools,  is  sure 
that  "the  Sunday-school  is  the  one  efficient  agency" 
for  supplying  the  lack  of  home  religious  teaching  in  the 
upper  classes  of  England.  ^ 

In  short,  the  record  of  history  shows  that,  in  England, 
family  religion  was  at  a  very  low  ebb  when  the  modern 
Sunday-school  was  introduced  there;  that,  in  proportion 
as  the  Sunday-school  in  England  has  made  progress, 
family  religion  has  there  been  extended  and  improved — 
in  the  immediate  sphere  of  the  Sunday-school  and  beyond 
it;  and  that  to-day  family  religion  in  England  is  at  its 
best  where  Sunday-school  instruction  is  most  highly 
prized,  and  is  at  its  poorest  where  the  Sunday-school  is 
ignored  or  is  depreciated,  and  where,  in  fact,  the  family 
is  looked  upon  as  the  only  legitimate  agency  for  the 
religious  instruction  of  children.  And  as  it  has  been  in 
England,  so  it  has  been,  in  the  same  measure,  or  in  larger, 
all  the  world  over,  wherever  the  influence  of  the  Sunday- 
school  on  the  family  is  capable  of  an  intelligent  tracking 
for  a  series  of  years. 

Turn  now  to  a  glance  at  Scotland,  in  the  light  of  a  cen- 
tury ago  and  of  to-day.  Scotland  has  been  called  "the 
land  of  family  religion;"  but  that  designation  was  origi- 
nally acquired  in  the  days  when  the  Protestant  Reformers 
had  re-instituted  the  church-school  as  a  means  of  pro- 
moting religion  in  the  home;^  and  it  has  gained  new  force 
in  these  later  days,  under  the  impulse  which  the  Sunday- 
school  has  given  to  family  religion  in  Scotland,  as  else- 
where. It  is  not  true  that  home  religious  instruction 
was,  in  any  sense,  a  prominent  feature  in  the  Scottish  life 

•  See  The  Church  Sunday  School  Magazine  for  January,  1885,  pp.  165-167, 
2  See  Lecky's  Hist,  of  Eng.,  II.,  47  f. 


l6o  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

of  a  century  ago.  "An  intelligent  traveler  who  visited 
Scotland  in  1 787,"  and  who  is  cited  by  Lecky  as  a  com- 
petent witness  of  the  state  of  things  there,  has  this  to  say 
of  the  people  whom  he  observed :  "  The  common  people 
of  Scotland  are  more  than  a  century  behind  the  English 
in  improvement;  and  the  manners  of  the  Lowlanders  in 
particular  cannot  fail  to  disgust  a  stranger.  All  the 
stories  that  are  propagated  of  the  filth  and  habitual 
dirtiness  of  this  people  are  surpassed  by  the  reality;  and 
the  squalid,  unwholesome  appearance  of  their  garb  and 
countenances  is  exceeded  by  the  wretchedness  that  pre- 
vails within  their  houses."^  This,  be  it  remembered,  was 
just  before  the  modern  Sunday-school  obtained  a  foot-hold 
in  Scotland,  with  an  opportunity  of  showing  the  tendency 
of  its  influence  on  family  religion.  "It  is  certain,"  adds 
Lecky,  "that  during  a  great  part  of  the  eighteenth  century 
hard  drinking  and  other  convivial  excesses  were  carried 
among  the  upper  classes  in  Scotland  to  an  extent  con- 
siderably greater  than  in  England,  and  not  less  than  in 
Ireland;  "^  nor  does  Lecky  limit  his  exhibit  of  prevalent 
Scottish  immoralities  in  that  day  to  hard  drinking.^ 

But  to  limit  the  investigation  to  that  of  the  mere  form 
of  family  religion,  as  such,  at  that  time  in  Scotland,  does 
not  improve  this  picture.  Dean  Ramsay,  writing  thirty 
years  ago  of  the  generation  before  his  own,  in  Scotland, 
says :  "  Take,  as  an  example,  the  practice  of  family  prayer. 
Many  excellent  and  pious  households  of  the  former 
generation  would  not  venture  on  the  observance  [of  it]. 


1  Skrine's  Travels  in  the  North  of  England  and  part  of  Scotland,  pp.  71,  72 ; 
cited  in  Lecky's  Hist,  of  Eng.,  II.,  84  f. 

»  Hist,  of  Eng.,  II.,  96.  3  Ibid.,  II.,  97,  98. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  i6l 

I  am  afraid  because  they  were  afraid  of  the  sneer.  There 
was  a  fooHsh  application  of  the  term  '  Methodists,'  'saints,' 
'over-righteous,'  and  so  on,  where  the  practice  was 
observed.  It  was  to  take  up  a  rather  decided  position  in 
the  neighborhood;  and  I  can  testify  that  less  than  fifty 
years  ago  a  family  would  have  been  marked  and  talked 
of,  for  a  usage  of  which  now  throughout  the  country  the 
exception  is  rather  the  unusual  circumstance."^  Not 
much  crowding  out  of  religion  from  the  family,  by  the 
Sunday-school,  in  the  half-century's  progress  there! 

To  this  testimony  it  is  sufficient  to  add  the  specific 
and  conclusive  exhibit  of  the  whole  case  for  Scotland, 
made  by  Dr.  Thomas  Chalmers;  whose  competency  and 
fairness  as  a  witness  few  would  venture  to  question.  "  Is 
it  possible,"  he  asks,  in  his  "  Polity  of  Nations,"  "  for  any 
man  at  all  acquainted  with  the  chronology  of  Sabbath- 
schools,  to  affirm  that  they  are  the  instruments  of  having 
overthrown  the  family  religion  of  Scotland?  .  ,  .  The 
truth  is  that,  for  many  years  previous  to  the  extension  of 
this  system,  a  woful  degeneracy  was  going  on  in  the 
religious  habit  and  character  of  our  country;  that  [at  this 
period]  .  .  .  the  religious  spirit,  once  so  characteristic  of 
our  nation,  has  long  been  rapidly  subsiding,  .  .  .  and 
now  the  state  of  the  alternative  is  not  whether  the  rising 
generation  shall  be  trained  to  Christianity  in  schools,  or 
trained  to  it  under  the  roof  of  their  fathers;  but  whether 
they  shall  be  trained  to  it  in  schools,  or  not  trained  to  it 
at  all.  ...  So  far  from  [the  local  system  of  Sabbath- 
schools]  superseding  the  household  system  of  education, 
its  direct  consequence  is  to  establish  that  [household] 

1  Reminiscences  of  Scottish  Life  and  Character,  p.  12. 
II 


1 62  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

system  in  places  where  it  was  before  unknown;  or  to 
restore  it  in  places  where,  through  the  decay  of  Chris- 
tianity for  one  or  more  generations,  it  had  for  some  time 
been  suspended.  .  .  .  Nor  can  we  conceive  any  degree 
of  piety  or  Christian  wisdom,  on  the  part  of  parents,  that 
should  lead  them  to  regard  a  well-conducted  Sabbath- 
school  in  any  other  light  than  as  a  blessing  and  an 
acquisition  to  tlicir  children."^ 

Ireland  was  even  less  favored  than  England  or  Scotland 
in  the  matter  of  family  religion  a  century  ago;^  hence  it 
had  more  to  gain  and  less  to  imperil,  in  that  line,  than 
either  of  those  countries,  through  the  introduction  of  the 
Sunday-school.  In  fact,  of  some  parts  of  Ireland  at  the 
opening  of  this  century,  it  is  said  by  one  historical  writer, 
that  "  even  the  Protestant  children  were  '  no  better  than 
heathens;'"  while  of  the  latter  part  of  last  century  an- 
other historian  affirms,  that  "the  great  mass  of  the  Irish 
Catholics  were  either  absolutely  illiterate,  or  were  left  to 
the  slight,  uncertain,  and  often  perverting,  teaching  of  the 
hedge  schoolmaster."  ^  After  a  quarter  of  a  centuiy's 
progress  of  Sunday-school  work  in  Ireland,  the  Parlia- 
mentary Report  of  the  Irish  Education  Inquiry  said  of 
the  influence  of  Sunday-schools  in  that  land:  "The  influ- 
ence on  moral  character,  which  has  already  been  produced 
in  those  parts  of  Ireland  where  institutions  of  this  kind 
have  been  formed,  is  attested  by  undoubted  authority. 
A  marked  improvement  in  principle  and  conduct,  an 
increased  respect  to  moral  obligation,  a  more  general 

1  Works,  X.,  208-212.     See,  also,  Lecky's  Hist,  of  Eng.,  II.,  96-98. 
2  See  Young's  Tour  in  Ireland  in  1776-1779;    also  Sir  George  Nicholls's 
History  of  the  Irish  Poor  Lmo,  p.  14. 

3  Lecky's  Hist,  of  Eng.,  VI.,  451. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  1 63 

observance  of  relative  duties,  and  a  greater  deference  to 
the  laws,  are  invariably  represented  as  among  the  fruits 
of  the  education  there  received;  and  we  entertain  no 
doubt  that  it  is  one  of  the  most  powerful  instruments  for 
raising  the  character  and  advancing  the  general  welfare 
of  the  people."^ 

Nearly  forty  years  later  the  Rev.  Dr.  Urwick,  of  Dublin, 
in  citing  this  report,  said  further  of  the  influence  of  Sun- 
day-schools in  Ireland  that,  in  addition  to  promoting 
popular  Bible-study,  and  general  education,  and  the 
evangelizing  of  the  young,  and  the  spirituality  of  the 
churches,  they  had  done  much  to  extend  and  to  improve 
family  religion  in  the  community.  "  The  mere  fact,"  he 
said,  "that  children  attend  the  Sunday-school,  brings  the 
subject  of  religion,  week  after  week,  before  the  minds  of 
the  parents,  and  is  a  standing  admonition  that  the  fear 
of  God  should  be  the  law  of  the  household.  What  the 
children  learn  at  the  school  they  naturally  speak  of  at 
home,  and,  in  many  cases,  [they]  become  in  their  turn 
teachers  of  the  true,  and  witnesses  for  the  right,  in  the 
family  circle.  To  this  must  be  added  friendly  visits  from 
the  Christian  persons  who  instruct  the  children  on  Sun- 
days. .  .  .  Their  example,  counsels,  and  kind  intercourse, 
operate  powerfully  to  purify  and  bless,  rendering  the 
dwelling,  however  humble,  like  the  house  of  God  and 
the  gate  of  heaven."^ 

But  it  is  in  Wales  that  the  influence  of  the  Sunday- 
school,  in  improving  the  community  and  in  bringing 
religion  into  the  family,  is  marked  and  obvious  above  all 

1  Cited  by  W.  F.  Lloyd,  in  his  Life  of  Robert  Raikes,  pp.  74-81. 
'  See  Report  of  the  Proceedings  of  the  General  Sunday  School  Convention, 
London,  Sept.  1-5,  1862,  p.  25  f. 


1 64  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

that  is  shown  so  clearly  in  England,  Scotland,  and 
Ireland.  As  Scotland  has  been  called  "  the  land  of  family- 
religion,"  Wales  has  been  called  "the  land  of  Sunday- 
schools."  It  is  probably  true  that  in  Wales  a  larger  pro- 
portion of  the  entire  population  is  to  be  found  in  the 
Sunday-school  than  in  any  other  community  of  like  extent 
throughout  the  globe.  And  it  is  probably  also  true  that 
in  no  other  part  of  the  world  is  there  a  community  of 
like  extent  so  thoroughly  evangelized  as  Wales,  or  one 
where  family  religion  is  so  nearly  universal.  Yet  Wales 
had  no  marked  superiority  in  its  religious  standing  over 
other  parts  of  Great  Britain,  at  the  opening  of  this  century, 
or  at  the  close  of  the  last. 

The  Rev.  Thomas  Charles,  of  Bala,  who  was  chiefly 
instrumental  in  introducing  the  Sunday-school  into  Wales 
at  that  period,  found  that,  in  a  considerable  stretch  of 
country,  not  one  person  in  twenty  could  read  the  Bible; 
while  in  entire  neighborhoods  only  a  single  person  had 
received  any  instruction  in  reading.  The  only  bright 
spots  were  where  circulating  Bible-schools,  on  the  week- 
day, had  been  set  up  by  the  Rev.  Griffith  Jones,  some 
fifty  years  before.^  In  the  Sunday-schools  as  founded  by 
Mr.  Charles,  and  as  continued  to  the  present  day,  in 
Wales,  not  only  children,  but  adults,  join  in  Bible-study; 
so  that  entire  communities  are  direct  sharers  in  the  bene- 
fits of  such  study.  In  speaking  of  the  need  and  value  of 
his  work  after  a  quarter  of  a  century's  trial  of  its  results, 
Mr.  Charles  said:  "Where  the  [Sunday-]  schools  are 
neglected,  .  .  .  there  is  no  progress  made  in  any  way 
whatever  in  regard  to  divine  things :  where  the  schools 

1  See  Lecky's  Hist,  of  Etig.,  II.,  656  f. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  1 65 

are  low,  the  cause  of  religion  will  almost  always  be  found 
to  be  so  too." 

Some  forty  years  or  more  subsequent  to  this  testimony 
of  Mr.  Charles,  a  report  of  one  of  the  Assistant  Commis-- 
sioners  of  the  Royal  Education  Commission  affirmed : 
"The  Welsh  Sunday-school  can  well  afford  to  allow 
itself  to  be  tested  by  the  results  it  has  achieved.  In  little 
more  than  half  a  century,  it  has  been  the  main  agency  in 
effecting  that  change  in  the  moral  and  social  population 
of  the  country,  to  which  a  parallel  can  scarcely  be  found 
in  history.  .  .  .  There  can  be  no  mistake  here  as  to  the 
cause;  we  have  to  deal  with  no  complications  in  the 
social  condition  of  the  population  of  the  Principality;  it 
is  traceable,  as  it  were,  step  by  step,  to  the  Sunday-school 
as  the  main  socfal  agency.  In  disseminating  among  a 
whole  population  religious  knowledge,  the  Sunday-school 
[in  Wales]  has  fulfilled  its  mission."  ^  And  this  is  the 
way  in  which  the  Sunday-school  has  shown  its  tendency, 
as  bearing  upon  family  religion,  in  that  corner  of  the 
globe  where  the  Sunday-school  sway  has  been  chiefest, 
and  where  family  religion  stands  highest. 

America  was  not  so  different  from  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland,  in  the  lack  of  home  religious  instruction  just 
before  the  introduction  of  the  Sunday-school;  nor  has  it 
proved  so  different  in  the  new  impulse  given  to  family 
religion  by  the  Sunday-school.  The  Sunday-school  was 
not  a  considerable  factor  in  American  social  life  until  a 
quarter  of  a  century  later  than  its  re-introduction  into 
Great  Britain;    hence  it  is  necessary  to    count  family 

1  These  facts  are  from  Mr.  Hugh  Owen's  paper  on  "  The  History  and 
Influence  of  Sunday-schools  in  Wales,"  in  Report  of  the  General  Sunday 
School  Convention,  1862,  pp.  3S-47. 


1 66  THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

religion  in  America  as  practically  unaffected  by  the 
Sunday-school  down  to  1815  to  1820.  And  what  was 
the  state  of  things  in  this  country  for  a  quarter  of  a  cen- 
tury prior  to  then  ? 

Take,  for  example,  our  American  colleges,  founded  as 
they  were  for  the  express  purpose  of  providing  the  means 
of  a  thorough  Christian  education.  It  is  obvious  that 
their  students  would  fairly  represent  the  better  class  of 
Christian  families  in  the  community ;  and  that  the  reli- 
gious attitude  of  those  students  would  go  far  to  indicate 
the  nature  and  effectiveness  of  the  home  religious  instruc- 
tion then  prevalent  in  that  class  of  families.  Now  the 
fact  is  capable  of  explicit  proof,  that,  at  the  close  of  the 
last  century  and  at  the  beginning  of  this,  a  college  stu- 
dent who  reverently  accepted  the  Bible  as  a  divinely 
inspired  book  was  an  exception  in  our  colleges  gener- 
ally. In  1795  there  were  only  eleven  church-members 
out  of  a  hundred  and  ten  students  in  Yale  College;  while 
many  of  the  students  had  adopted  the  names  of  prominent 
English  and  French  infidels,  and  were  open  in  the  advo- 
cacy of  infidel  opinions.^  Four  years  later,  with  a  larger 
number  of  students,  the  number  of  church-members  was 
reduced  to  five;  and  at  one  communion  service  only  one 
student  communicant  was  present.^  Nor  was  Yale  Col- 
lege, at  this  time,  a  marked  exception  among  the  colleges 
of  New  England  in  the  low  religious  standard  of  its  stu- 
dents generally.  It  is  said,  indeed,  of  Bowdoin  College, 
in  1807,  that  "only  one-  student  [among  the  undergradu- 
ates] was  willing  to  avow  himself  a  Christian."^ 

1  See  Dwight's  Theology,  pp.  20-26. 

2  Professor  Chauncey  A.  Goodrich,  in  American  Quarterly  Register,  X.,294. 

2  See  Dorchester's  Problem  of  Religious  Progress,  p.  99. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  1 67 

Outside  of  New  England  the  colleges  made  little,  if 
any,  better  show.  Bishop  Meade,  of  Virginia,  writing  of 
the  condition  of  affairs  in  his  own  state,  in  18 11,  and 
earlier,  says :  "  Infidelity,  indeed,  was  then  rife  in  the 
state,  and  the  College  of  William  and  Mary  was  regarded 
as  the  hot-bed  of  French  politics  and  religion.  I  can 
truly  say  that  then,  and  for  some  years  after,  in  every 
educated  young  man  of  Virginia  whom  I  met  I  expected 
to  find  a  skeptic,  if  not  an  avowed  unbeliever."  ^  President 
Ashbel  Green,  of  Princeton  College,  says  of  his  fellow- 
students  in  his  undergraduate  days  there  (1778-82):  "I 
w^as  at  that  time  the  only  professor  of  religion  among 
them,  and  a  number  of  them  were  grossly  profane."^ 
Agaitt  he  says :  "  There  were  .  .  .  not  more  than  five  or 
six  who  scrupled  to  use  profane  language  in  common 
conversation."^  As  late  as  18 14,  only  twelve  out  of  one 
hundred  and  five  students  were  church-members.*  Chan- 
cellor Kent,  who  graduated  from  Yale  in  1781,  and  who 
was,  for  years,  an  instructor  in  Columbia  College,  said,  in 
the  latter  part  of  his  life  :  **  In  my  younger  days  there  were 
very  few  professional  men  that  were  not  infidels ;  or  at 
least  they  were  so  far  inclined  to  infidelity  that  they  could 
not  be  called  believers  in  the  truth  of  the  Bible."  ^  And 
this,  be  it  remembered,  is  a  suggestion  of  the  choicer 
aspects  of  American  family  life  before  the  days  of  Sun- 
day-schools.*' 

1  Old  Churches,  Alinisters,  and  Families  of  Virginia,  I.,  29. 

2  Jones's  Life  of  Ashbel  Green,  p.  133, 

'  Cited  in  Dorchester's  Christianity  in  the  United  States,  p.  287. 

*  Jones's  Life  of  Ashbel  Green,  p.  620,  note. 

6  Cited  in  Dorchester's  Problem  of  Religiotts  Progress,  p.  98. 

8  It  is  a  very  common  thing  to  ascribe  the  change  in  the  condition  of  our 

American  colleges  to  revivals  of  religion,  and  even  to  point  to  the  precise 


1 68  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

Added  gleams  of  the  state  of  things  in  the  households 
and  schools  of  that  period  are  given  to  us  in  various 
memorial  sermons  and  local  histories.  Thus  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Abel  McEwen,  of  New  London,  Connecticut — the 
man  who  won  the  valedictory  in  the  contest  with  John  C. 
Calhoun,  at  the  time  of  his  graduation  from  Yale — says 
of  the  community  in  which  he  was  settled  in  1806: 
"  Little  of  family  religion  could  be  found.  Households, 
at  their  meals,  sat  down  to  eat  and  rose  up  to  play.  Few 
children  or  domestics  heard  the  head  of  their  house  ask 
a  blessing  or  give  thanks  at  their  table.  So  far  as  careful 
inquiry  can  be  relied  on  for  the  knowledge  of  facts,  in 
but  two  families  in  this  whole  congregation  [of  the  First 
Church]  was  daily  family  prayer  maintained;  though 
prayer,  Saturday  evenings,  was,  every  week,  offered  by 
one  other  householder  at  the  head  of  his  family.^  Probably 
in  two  other  houses,  perhaps  in  three,  belonging  to  two 
other  religious  denominations  [in  this  community],  family 
prayer  was,  by  laymen,  daily  offered."^     Is  there  need  of 


date  of  the  revival  in  this  or  that  college  which  ushered  in  the  better  day- 
there.  But  it  will  be  remembered  that  similar  revivals  had  taken  place  in 
former  times,  without  securing  that  permanent  continuance  of  religious  inter- 
est in  our  colleges  which  has  been  co-existent  with  Sunday-school  progress. 
The  great  awaking  in  the  days  of  Edwards  and  Wliitefield  was  quite  as  potent, 
for  the  time  being,  in  our  colleges,  as  any  or  all  of  the  revivals  at  the  begin- 
ning of  this  century  ;  but  the  decline  which  followed  the  former  did  not  follow 
the  latter.  The  family,  without  the  Sunday-schools  bore  no  comparison,  so 
far,  with  the  family  and  the  Sunday-school,  as  a  religious  training  agency. 

1  Saturday  night,  it  will  be  remembered,  was  by  many  looked  upon  as  the 
beginning  of  the  Sabbath ;  hence  a  service  of  family  worship  at  that  time 
would  be  in  a  sense  a  Sabbath  service.  Thus  it  is  that  Burns  sings  of  The 
Cotter's  Saturday  Night,  in  Scotland,  in  those  days  when,  according  to  Chal- 
mers, family  religion  was  there  generally  suspended. 

2  Half  Century  Sermon,  p.  15  f. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  1 69 

testimony  to  show  that  household  rehgion  has  stood 
better  in  that  community  since  Sunday-school  influences 
were  felt  in  its  family  life? 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Heman  Humphrey  had  a  similar  stoiy 
to  tell  of  the  state  of  family  religion  in  Fairfield,  Con- 
necticut, at  the  time  of  his  settlement  there,  a  few  years 
later  than  Dr.  McEwen's  settlement  at  New  London. 
Speaking  not  only  of  Connecticut  but  of  all  New  England, 
in  181 2,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lyman  Beccher  said:  "From 
various  causes  the  ancient  discipline  of  the  family  has 
been  extensively  neglected.  Children  have  neither  been 
governed  nor  instructed  in  religion  as  they  were  in  the 
days  of  our  fathers.  .  .  .  Thousands  of  families  .  .  .  have 
either  not  reared  the  family  altar,  or  have  put  out  the 
sacred  fire,  and  laid  aside  together  the  rod  and  the  Bible 
as  superfluous  auxiliaries  in  the  education  of  children."  ^ 
And  two  years  later  Dr.  Beecher  said,  concerning  this 
decline  of  religious  instruction  in  the  family,  and  the 
exclusion  of  "  the  Bible  and  catechetical  instruction " 
from  the  common  school:  "The  result  was  a  brood  of 
infidels,  and  heretics,  and  profligates;  a  generation  pre- 
pared to  be  carried  about,  as  they  have  been,  by  every 
wind  of  doctrine."^  In  18 19,  the  Rev.  Abel  Flint,  of 
Hartford,  Connecticut,  affirmed:  "It  is  also  a  melancholy 
fact  that  few  children  receive  suitable  religious  instruction 
from  their  parents  or  others  at  home."  The  Rev.  William 
Cogswell,  of  Dedham,  Massachusetts,  writing  in  1826, 
said:  "We  regret  to  be  compelled  to  acknowledge  that 
family  worship  is  comparatively  but  little  observed.  .  .  . 
The  neglect  of  this  duty  to  so  great  an  extent  is  a  1am- 

1  Sermons  Delivered  o?i  Various  Occasions,  p.  83.  "^  Ibid.,  p.  iii. 


1 70  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

entable  and  an  alarming  consideration.  It  is  a  reproach 
upon  our  age."  ^ 

A  writer  in  The  Christian  Spectator,  in  18 19,  treating 
of  this  subject,  said :  "  The  neglect  of  parents  in  regard  to 
the  religious  culture  of  their  children  has,  during  the  last 
century,  greatly  increased;  and  forms  one  of  the  most 
decisive  and  alarming  proofs  of  the  gradual  deterioration 
of  our  population.  The  scrupulous  attention  of  our 
ancestors  to  this  duty  was  a  conspicuous  trait  in  their 
character,  and  contributed  greatly  to  the  production  and 
maintenance  of  that  strictness  and  purity  of  morals  which 
have  so  much  distinguished  the  inhabitants  of  New 
England,  .  .  .  The  gradually  increasing  neglect  of  the 
religious  instruction  of  children,  originating  obviously 
from  the  decline  of  parental  faithfulness  and  piety,  while 
it  is  a  most  melancholy  proof  of  the  gradual  retrograda- 
tion  of  our  population  in  morals  and  religion,  suggests 
and  justifies,  unless  it  is  speedily  arrested,  alarming 
apprehensions  for  future  generations.  .  .  .  No  incon- 
siderable portion  of  the  children  and  youth  of  this  state 
[Connecticut]  in  which  more  than  anywhere  else  the 
means  of  religious  instruction  abound,  are  lamentably 
ignorant  of  Christianity.  In  some  other  parts  of  the 
country  the  evil  is  undoubtedly  greater."^ 

Referring  to  the  closing  years  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury, a  historian  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United 
States  says :  "  The  cause  of  religion,  in  many  parts  of  the 
land,  seemed  to  be  on  the  decline,  and  the  prospect  grew 
darker  and  more  discouraging  with  each  succeeding  year." 
He  cites  an  official  utterance  of  the  General  Assembly  in 

1  The  Assistant  to  Family  Religion,  p.  27. 
'  The  Christian  Spectator,  May,  1819. 


rrS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  171 

proof  of  the  fact,  that  not  only  was  there,  in  the  com- 
munity at  large,  "a  general  dereliction  of  religious  prin- 
ciples and  practice  amongst  our  fellow-citizens ;  a  great 
departure  from  the  faith  and  simple  purity  of  manners 
for  which  our  fathers  were  remarkable ;  a  visible  and 
prevailing  impiety  and  contempt  for  the  laws  and  insti- 
tutions of  religion;  and  an  abounding  infidelity  which  in 
many  instances  tends  to  atheism  itself; "  but  even  within 
the  bounds  of  the  church  itself  "  *a  dissolution  of  religious 
society '  seemed  to  be  threatened,  by  '  the  supineness  and 
inattention  of  many  ministers  and  professors  of  Chris- 
tianity.' "  And  he  adds  that  "  the  profanation  of  the  Sab- 
bath, tJie  neglect  of  family  religioji  a?td  instruction,  ingrati- 
tude to  God  for  his  benefits,  'profligacy  and  corruption  of 
public  morals,  profaneness,  pride,  luxury,  injustice,  intem- 
perance, lewdness,  and  every  species  of  debauchery  and 
loose  indulgence,'  were  sins  which  greatly  abounded."^ 

Of  that  portion  of  Kentucky  which  was  first  occupied 
by  Presbyterian  families,  it  is  said  that  in  1793  a  religious 
decline  had  already  shown  itself  "The  seeds  of  French 
infidelity  had  been  sown  broadcast  over  it.  .  .  .  Lawless- 
ness largely  prevailed.  Family  education  and  religion 
fell  into  neglect."  ^  A  visitor  to  Western  New  York  in 
1 798  wrote,  that  "  religion  has  not  got  west  of  the  Genesee 
River." ^  Several  years  later  than  this,  "the  practice  of 
family  worship  "  is  declared  by  Bishop  Meade  to  have 
been  "indeed  a  novelty  in  that  day  in  Virginia."*  And 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Archibald  Alexander,  in  repudiating  the 

1  Gillett's  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  I.,  297  f.       2  /^/,f^  I.,42of. 

3  Cited  in  Dorchester's  Problem  of  Religious  Progress,  p.  185. 

*  Old  Churches,  Ministers,  and  Families  of  Virginia,  I.,  34. 


173  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

suggestion  that  it  was  the  Sunday-school  which  had 
brought  family  religious  training  into  neglect,  says  em- 
phatically: "The  fact  is  that  this  neglect  had  taken  place 
very  extensively  in  this  country  many  years  before  this 
institution  was  thought  of."^  And  this  seems  to  be  the 
concurrent  testimony  of  all  who  speak  by  the  record  of 
authenticated  facts. 

If,  indeed,  it  be  true  that  the  tendency  of  the  Sunday- 
school  is  to  diminish  the  measure  and  power  of  family 
religion  in  its  field,  it  ought  to  have  made  short  work  of 
the  little  there  was  remaining  for  it  to  destroy  at  the  time 
it  first  came  into  prominence  in  the  United  States.  But 
while  family  religion  is  not  yet  what  it  should  be  in  this 
country,  it  was  never  so  good,  nor  was  there  ever  so 
much  of  it,  as  since  the  influence  of  the  Sunday-school 
has  been  brought  to  bear  in  its  favor. 

A  few  years  ago  the  present  President  of  Harvard 
University  made  public  the  result  of  an  inquiry  on  his 
part  concerning  the  habit  of  family  prayers  in  the  homes 
from  which  came  the  students  of  his  charge.  Out  of 
seven  hundred  and  forty-one  families  represented  by  his 
undergraduates,  two  hundred  and  eleven,  or  about  two- 
sevenths  of  all,  were  reported  as  accustomed  to  have 
family  prayers.^  Even  though  it  might  well  be  wished 
that  a  more  satisfactory  showing  than  this  could  be  made 
in  such  a  university,  there  is  reason  for  believing  that 
it  is  a  far  better  one  than  could  have  been  made  by  Har- 
vard, or  by  Yale,  or  by  Princeton,  eighty  or  a  hundred 
years  ago.     And  who  will  claim  that  Harvard  has  gained 

1  Suggestions  in  Vindication  of  Sunday-schools,  (enlarged  edition,)  p.  40. 
*  Annual  Reports  of  the  President  and  Treasurer  of  Harvard  College, 
1880-81,  p.  18  f. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  F/IMILY.  1 73 

more  than  other  Christian  colleges  of  the  United  States 
in  this  particular,  since  the  Sunday-school  became  a 
power  in  the  land? 

In  truth,  the  Sunday-school  has  proved  a  means,  all 
our  country  over,  of  bringing  family  religion  into  families 
which  before  were  without  it,  and  of  raising  the  standard 
and  improving  the  character  of  family  religion  where  it 
already  had  a  place.  On  this  point  I  venture  to  bear  my 
personal  testimony,  instead  of  citing  the  opinion  of  others 
who  have  borne  testimony  in  the  same  direction.  For 
now  thirty  years  I  have  given  this  subject  close  attention, 
with  a  wide  and  varied  field  of  observation.  I  have  per- 
sonally visited  tens  of  thousands  of  families,  in  cit}^  and 
village  and  country,  in  a  range  of  twenty-nine  states, 
extending  from  Maine  to  California,  and  from  Minnesota 
to  Florida.  I  have  become  acquainted,  by  sight  and  by 
inquiry,  with  the  religious  habits  of  families  as  families 
where  the  Sunday-school  was  prominent,  where  the 
Sunday-school  was  a  minor  factor  in  the  community,  and 
where  there  was  no  Sunday-school;  and  I  have  also 
watched  the  course  of  things  year  by  year  from  without. 
Inv^ariably  have  I  found  that  the  measure  and  standard 
of  family  religion  corresponded  with  the  measure  and 
standard  of  Sunday-school  activities  in  each  and  every 
community.^     Moreover,  if  the  Sunday-school  came  into 

1  It  might  almost  be  said  that  the  Sunday-school  disclosed  to  Christian 
parents  generally  the  religious  possibilities  of  childhood,  and  so  prepared  the 
way  for  the  fitting  religious  training  of  children  at  home  and  in  the  sanctuary. 
Even  where  the  memorizing  of  the  Westminster  Catechism  was  insisted  on  in 
the  home,  before  the  days  of  the  Sunday-school,  the  very  children  who  had  a 
part  in  it  were  likely  to  be  ignorant  of  the  way  of  salvation,  and  to  be  counted 
by  their  parents  incapable.of  an  understanding  of  that  way.  Where,  indeed, 
a  child  was  taught  set  forms  of  prayer,  the  idea  of  a  child's  framing  for  itself 


1 74  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL : 

a  community  where  there  was  no  family  religion,  family 
religion  was  revived  there;  while  if  the  Sunday-school 
declined  in  a  community  where  family  religion  had  pre- 
vailed, family  religion  was  sure  to  decline  correspondingly. 
I  go  farther  than  this,  as  bearing  on  the  question  of 
the  tendency  of  the  Sunday-school  to  lessen  or  to  increase 
a  sense  of  parental  responsibility  for  the  home  religious 


a  prayer  of  faith  was  hardly  conceivable  to  the  average  Christian  parent.  A 
New  England  clergyman's  wife  told  me,  years  ago,  that  when,  as  a  child,  she 
and  one  or  two  of  her  playmates  were  interested  in  the  subject  of  personal 
religion,  they  dared  not  be  detected  by  their  parents  in  social  prayer,  lest 
their  action  should  be  deemed  irreverent,  and  they  were  necessitated  to  seek 
Christ  clandestinely.  Similar  statements  have  been  made  to  me  by  many  of 
those  who  remembered  the  ante-Sunday-school  age;  and  I  have  personally 
found  vestiges  of  this  feeling  in  primitive  New  England  neighborhoods,  where 
parents  actually  objected  to  the  attendance  of  their  children  at  a  Sunday- 
school  while  "  too  young  to  be  Christians."  Even  in  the  sanctuary,  the  chil- 
dren, as  a  rule,  had  no  place  in  the  family  pew  prior  to  the  Sunday-school 
day ;  but  they  were  huddled  together  in  the  galleries  under  the  watch  and  rod 
of  the  tithing-man.  In  the  first  Ajinual  Report  of  the  Connecticut  Sunday 
School  Union,  (1826,)  a  change  in  this  particular  is  reported  from  the  church 
in  Farmington,  over  which  the  father  of  President  Porter,  of  Yale,  was  pastor. 
"  One  of  the  most  serious  impediments  to  the  successful  prosecution  of  our 
object,"  says  the  report  (p.  12),  "has  always,  hitherto,  been  the  long- 
established  and  inveterately  fixed  custom  of  seating  parents  and  heads  of 
families  separately  from  their  children  and  households ;  and  these,  instead  of 
being  located  in  situations  favorable  for  the  restraining  influence  of  their 
teachers,  were,  in  accordance  with  long  established  usage,  improperly  in- 
dulged with  the  liberty  of  choosing  their  own  seats,  and  changing  them  from 
Sabbath  to  Sabbath,  in  different  parts  of  the  galleries  of  the  church  ;  thus, 
through  a  faulty  construction  of  some  parts  of  the  house,  they  easily  could, 
and  often  did,  cluster  in  companies  and  engage  in  frivolity,  while  screened 
from  the  view  of  the  congregation  at  large.  .  .  .  The  efforts  of  the  tithing- 
men,  and  the  most  careful  endeavors  of  Sabbath-school  teachers,  were  insuf- 
ficient to  remedy  the  evil."  At  last,  however,  the  endeavors  of  the  Sunday- 
school  had  secured  a  place  for  the  children  of  Christian  parents  in  the  family 
pew,  in  the  church  at  Farmington,  as  in  many  another  church  elsewhere. 
And  so  it  is  that  the  Sunday-school  has  been  the  means  of  e.xtending  the 
scope  and  improving  the  character  of  family  religious  instruction  and  influence. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  1 75 

instruction  of  the  children.  One  of  my  assistants,  while 
I  was  in  charge  of  Sunday-school  missionary  work  in 
New  England,  at  my  request,  made  specific  inquiry  on 
this  point,  in  more  than  three  thousand  homes,  visited 
consecutively  in  back  districts  and  border  neighborhoods 
where  were  no  Sunday-schools.  Very  many  of  the 
homes  thus  canvassed  were  the '  homes  of  confessing 
Christians;  all  of  them  were  the  homes  of  parents  who 
knew  that  unless  tJuy  instructed  their  children  in  religious 
matters,  those  children  would  remain  uninstructed.  In 
not  above  six  of  those  more  than  three  thousand  families 
did  the  parents  claim  to  give  any  systematic  or  specific 
religious  instruction  to  their  children.  All  the  others 
frankly  admitted  that  their  children  were  without  such 
instruction.  Never  in  my  canvassing — personally  or  by 
proxy — of  homes  represented  in  the  Sunday-school,  have 
I  found  reason  for  supposing  that  the  proportion  of 
homes  where  religious  instruction  was  an  important 
feature  of  the  home  life  was  not  more  than  one  hundred 
times  larger  than  that.  Even  where  in  the  immediate 
field  of  a  Sunday-school  I  have  found  an  exception  of  a 
Christian  parent  who  deliberately  kept  his  children  away 
from  Sunday-school  in  order  to  their  better  teaching  at 
home,  I  have  never  yet  found  the  household  worship  and 
the  home  religious  instruction  of  the  children  to  compare 
favorably  with  such  worship  and  instruction  in  the  better 
class  of  homes  represented  in  the  membership  of  the 
Sunday-schools.^ 

In  short,  I  believe  that  whatever  we  have,  in  America, 

*  Both  in  measure  and  in  methods,  family  worship  and  household  religious 
instruction,  in  the  homes  of  those  who  have  been  reached  by  the  modern 
Sunday-school,  are  far  in  advance  of  anything  that  was  known  in  the  best 


176  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

of  satisfactory  home  religious  instruction,  is  largely  due 
to  the  Sunday-school;  and  that  our  still  existing  lack,  in 
this  direction,  in  the  home,  is  to  be  reached  and  supplied 
through  a  wise  use  and  a  wise  improving  of  the  Sunday- 
school,  as  the  divinely  appointed  complement  of  the 
family  for  the  religious  teaching  of  the  young.  And  as 
in  America  in  modern  times,  so  everywhere  and  always, 
the  brightest  days  of  family  religion  have  been  coincident 
with,  and  have  been  consequent  upon,  the  efficiency  of 
church-school  work  in  the  community.  It  stands  to 
reason,  as  well  as  accords  with  revelation,  that  this 
should  be  so. 

Is  it  true  that  the  tendency  of  outside  medical  counsel 
for  the  sick,  in  any  family  circle,  is  to  diminish  the 
measure  or  the  quality  of  the  home  nursing  there?  Is 
it  true  that  attendance  at  meetings  for  social  prayer,  or  at 
gatherings  for  public  worship,  is  liable  in  itself  to  lessen 
the  attendant's  interest  in  his  family  prayers,  or  in  his 
private  devotions?  Is  it  true  that  the  influence  of  a  vil- 
lage singing-school  is  to  prevent  the  parents  and  children 
who  patronize  it  from  singing  together  in  their  own 
homes  ?  Is  it  true  that  free  public  libraries  are  likely  to 
make  home  reading  a  less  prominent  feature  in  the 
families  of  those  who  visit  them?  Would  any  one  claim 
that  schools  and  colleges  have  a  natural  tendency  to 
lessen  the  responsibility  of  parents  for  the  education  of 
the  children  who  are  sent  to  those  institutions  of  learn- 

cared  for  homes  of  our  godliest  ancestors.  Children  are  now  given  an  intelH- 
gent  part  in  the  exercises  of  family  worship,  and  are  won  to  an  interest  in  the 
theme  of  the  Bible  lesson  for  the  week  or  for  the  day,  which  would  not  have 
been  deemed  a  possibility  t.i  persons  of  their  age  in  the  days  before  the  Sun- 
day-school. On  this  point  I  speak  out  of  my  personal  knowledge  in  a  wide 
and  varied  field  of  observation. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  177 

ing;  or  that  the  absence  of  such  quickening  agencies  of 
education  would  increase  the  readiness  of  parents  to  teach 
their  own  children  faithfully  in  their  homes?  How  un- 
reasonable, indeed,  the  suggestion  that  because  children 
are  sent  to  the  place  of  Bible-study,  and  come  back  from 
it  full  of  interest  in  its  teachings,  and  full  of  questions 
raised  by  its  exercises,  the  parents  of  those  children  are 
less  likely  to  have  a  part  in  their  children's  religious  in- 
struction, than  if  there  were  no  outside  promptings  to 
such  a  work  for  the  little  ones!^ 

There  is  certainly  a  gain  to  young  children  in  the 
sympathy  and  the  stimulus  of  numbers  as  a  means  of  im- 
pression and  of  instruction;  and  no  child  can  be  brought 
to  the  same  standard  of  religious  intelligence  and  feeling 
without  this  aid  as  with  it.  It  is  equally  certain  that,  in 
securing  this  aid  to  his  child,  a  wise  parent  ought  to  look 
well  to  the  classmates  and  to  the  teacher  who  are  to  be 
the  means  of  its  securing.  If,  indeed,  the  parent  is  one 
who  will  not  be  at  the  pains  to  watch  at  a  point  like  this, 

1  While  preparing  this  lecture  for  delivery,  I  had  a  conversation  on  its  sub- 
ject with  a  mother  of  exceptional  intelligence  and  devotedness,  who  had 
hitherto  conscientiously  kept  her  little  daughter  away  from  the  Sunday-school, 
m  order  that  that  child's  religious  instruction  might  be  secured  exclusively  in 
the  home  circle.  To  my  surprise  I  learned  that  the  child  was  now  a  pupil  in 
the  Sunday-school,  her  mother  attending  therewith  her.  "  But  how  is  this?  " 
1  asked.  "  I  thought  you  felt  that  the  home,  and  not  the  Sunday-school,  was 
the  place  for  a  child's  religious  teaching."  "That's  what  I  do  think,"  she 
replied.  "  But  I  found  that  unless  I  had  a  set  time  for  the  home  teaching, 
and  a  special  subject  of  study,  I  was  liable  to  let  the  day  pass  by  without 
giving  all  the  attention  to  it  it  deserved.  So  now  I  go  to  the  Sunday-school 
with  my  child,  in  order  to  secure  her  right  teaching  there."  Few  mothers 
whom  I  have  ever  known  would  be  less  likely  than  that  mother  to  fail  of 
fidelity  to  her  child  in  the  matter  of  home  religious  mstruction  ;  and  the  diffi- 
culty she  found  in  the  attempt  to  get  on  without  the  Sunday-school  would  be 
far  more  of  a  difficulty  to  Christian  mothers  generally. 

12 


178  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

that  parent  is  clearly  most  unlikely  to  be  faithful  and 
wise  in  the  home  religious  teaching  of  his  child;  and  liis 
child  will  probably  gain  more,  in  this  line,  in  the  average 
Sunday-school  as  it  stands,  than  in  his  home  as  it  is  con- 
stituted. If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  parent  is  one  who 
will  give  attention  to  a  matter  like  this,  he  ought  to 
realize  that  his  child  can  never  be  as  well  taught  and 
trained  in  the  home  alone,  as  in  the  home  with  the  co- 
work  of  the  divinely  appointed  church -school,  —  the 
family's  complemental  training  agency  for  the  young; 
for  there  is  absolutely  nothing  in  the  Word  of  God,  in  the 
lessons  of  history,  or  in  the  teachings  of  sound  reason, 
to  justify  a  parent  in  shutting  up  a  child  to  the  family 
alone  in  all  the  course  of  its  religious  education. 

But  it  will  naturally  be  asked,  How  could  an  impres- 
sion that  the  influence  of  the  Sunday-school  does,  or  that 
it  may,  bear  adversely  on  family  religion,  or  on  the 
parental  sense  of  responsibility  for  the  religious  instruc- 
tion of  children,  come  to  prevail  so  widely  for  a  long 
series  of  years,  unless  it  had  something  in  fact,  in  reason, 
or  in  Scripture,  for  its  justifying,  or  for  its  prompting? 
And  this  very  natural  question  can  very  easily  be  answered. 
It  is  a  principle  in  human  nature  to  glorify  the  past  un- 
reasonably and  unreasoningly ;  and  then  to  seek  plausible 
reasons  for  the  supposed  degeneracy  of  the  present,  in  its 
contrast  with  the  ideal  standard  of  the  days  of  old.^    And 

1  The  Hebrews  in  the  wilderness  looked  back  upon  the  good  old  days  of 
their  hard  bondage  in  Egypt,  and  their  cry  was:  "We  remember  the  fish 
which  we  did  eat  in  Egypt  for  nought  [without  cost]  ;  the  cucumbers,  and 
the  melons,  and  the  leeks,  and  the  onions,  and  the  garlick  :  but  now  our  soul 
is  dried  away;  there  is  nothing  at  all"  (Num.  11:  5,  6).  Meanwhile  the 
Egyptians  themselves  were  looking  back  to  the  better  days  before  the  Pha- 
raohs ;  when  the  hero-kings  were  preceded  by  the  demi-gods,  and  the  demi- 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  1 79 

this  principle  it  is  that  has  prompted  so  many,  first  to 
beheve  that  there  was  a  good  old  time  when  parents 
generally  were  faithful  and  efficient  in  the  religious  train- 
ing of  their  children,  and  then  to  consider  a  possible 
cause  of  the  present  obvious  lack  of  the  imagined  former 
perfectness.  This  baseless  belief  that  it  is  the  Sunday- 
school  which  has  brought  about  the  state  of  things  where 
not  every  parent  is  faithful,  nor  every  child  is  properly 
cared  for  at  home — as  "once  it  was,"  is  no  anomaly  in 
human  belief  It  is  one  of  that  endless  series  of  blunders 
which  Qoheleth  rebukes,  for  this  age  as  for  all  ages: 
"  Say  not  thou,  What  is  the  cause  that  the  former  days 
were  better  than  these?  for  thou  dost  not  inquire  wisely 
concerning  this."^  There  is  no  gain  in  searching  for  the 
cause  of  a  state  of  things  that  exists  only  in  fancy. 

It  is,  indeed,  an  instructive  pursuit  to  follow  back  the 
train  of  regrets  over  this  decline  of  family  religion,  in  our 
own  country  for  an  example,  as  bearing  on  the  matter  of 
the  influence  of  the  Sunday-school  in  this  direction.  Just 
when  was  that  good  old  day  of  godly  homes  and  of 
faithful  parental  instruction,  throughout  the  community, 
of  which  so  much  is  said  approvingly?  Was  it,  say,  fifty 
years  ago?  That  was  the  very  time  when  such  men  as 
Humphrey  and  Henshaw  and  Alexander,  as  already  cited, 
were  insisting  that  it  was  not  the  Sunday-school  which 
had  brought  about  the  supposed  unfavorable  contrast  with 

gods  by  the  gods  themselves  (Brugsch's  Egypt  under  the  Pharaohs,  I.,  33). 
The  classic  Greeks  were  sure  that  their  present  Iron  Age  had  followed  the 
Heroic,  which  again  had  followed  the  Brazen,  and  that  the  Silver,  and  that  the 
Golden  (Hesiod's  Opera  et  Dies,  lines  109-201).  It  is  always  the  long  ago 
that  was  the  choicer  time.  Pope  might  have  sung:  "Man  never  is,  but 
always  has  been  blest." 

'  Eccles.  7  :  10. 


l8o  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

the  family  religion  of  a  former  day.  What  if  we  go  back 
twenty-five  years  more?  Then  it  was  that,  as  McEwen 
and  Flint  and  Meade  and  Cogswell  and  Gillctt  tell  us, 
there  was  a  day  of  peculiar  neglect  of  home  religious 
teaching.  If  we  push  the  inquiry  to  a  century  ago,  we 
strike  the  time  of  which  Lyman  Beecher  speaks,  as  the 
day  when  the  bottomless  pit  was  reopened,  and  which 
all  historians  agree  as  marking  perhaps  the  lowest  level 
of  family  religious  life  in  our  history. 

To  go  back  to  the  middle  of  last  century  carries  us  to 
the  beginning  of  that  decline  which,  according  to  the  elder 
Dwight,  and  to  Dorchester,  followed  the  revival  under 
Edwards  and  Whitefield,  and  culminated  only  at  the  close 
of  the  century.  Yet  a  quarter  of  a  century  earlier  we 
reach  the  ante-revival  day,  which  Jonathan  Edwards 
speaks  of  as  "  a  far  more  degenerate  time  (at  least  among 
the  young  people)"  than  perhaps  "ev^er  before."^  Hear 
what  the  Rev.  Thomas  Prince,  of  Boston,  has  to  say  on 
this  subject,  in  1730.  As  he  saw  it,  the  "wonderful  work 
of  the  grace  of  God  begun  in  England  and  brought  over 
hither  [say  from  1620  to  1630]  was  carried  on  while  the 
greater  part  of  the  first  generation  lived,  for  about  thirty 
years;  and  then  the  second  generation  rising  up  and 
growing  thick  on  the  stage,  a  little  after  1660  there  began 
to  appear  a  decay;  and  this  increased  to  1670,  when  it 
grew  very  visible  and  threatening,  and  was  generally 
complained  of  and  bewailed  bitterly  by  the  pious  among 
them;  and  yet  much  more  in  1680,  when  but  few  of  the 
first  generation  remained."  ^  It  would  never  do  to  claim 
that  the  good  old  days  of  New  England  were  the  days  of 

1  In  Prince's  The  Christian  History,  for  1743,  p.  112.  *  Ibid.,  p.  93  f. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  l8l 

Thomas  Prince,  a  century  and  a  half  ago.  We  must  get 
back  of  that  time. 

In  1706,  Dr.  Cotton  Mather  in  a  sermon  on  "The  Good 
Old  Way,"  which  he  bewailed  with  vain  regrets,  declared  : 
"  There  is  a  general  and  a  horrible  decay  of  Christianity 
among  the  professors  of  it.  .  .  .  Ah!  sinful  nation.  Ah! 
children  that  are  corrupters.  .  .  .  The  complaints  of  the 
corruptions  in  the  lives  of  Christians  [in  New  England], 
little  short  of  universal,  are  everywhere,  every  day,  wound- 
ing our  ears."^  In  1700,  "the  Reverend  and  Renowned 
Mr.  Samuel  Willard,  pastor  of  the  South  Church  in 
Boston,  and  vice-president  of  Harvard  College,"  in  a  ser- 
mon on  "The  Perils  of  the  Times  Displayed,"  specified 
particularly,  as  one  of  the  existing  perils,  "the  grievous 
neglect  of  family  worship."  ^  Yet  a  little  earlier,  (1683,) 
the  Rev.  Samuel  Torrey,  of  Weymouth,  in  an  election  ser- 
mon before  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts,  moaned 
out:  "How  is  religion  dying  in  families,  through  the  neg- 
lect of  the  religious  service  and  worship  of  God,  and  of 
the  religious  education  of  children  and  youth  in  families! 
Truly,  here  and  hereby  religion  first  received  its  death 
wound"''' — in  New  England.  We  shall  need  to  push  on 
by  that  point,  in  our  search  for  the  Paradise  days  of 
New  England. 

Dr.  Increase  Mather,  father  of  Cotton,  writing  a  preface 
to  this  sermon  of  Mr.  Torrey's,  said  pithily:  "The  com- 
plaint is  that  New  England  is  not  to  be  found  in  New 
England."  ^  And  in  his  own  treatise,  published  five  years 
before  this,  under  the  title,  "  Pray  for  the  Rising  Genera- 
tion,"   his    testimony  was:     "The   body  of  the  rising 

1  In  Prince's  Christian  History,  p.  104. 
2  Ibid.,  p.  loi.  3  /^/^__  p  g|8  f.  *  Ibid.,  p.  99  f. 


1 82  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

generation  is  a  poor,  perishing,  unconverted,  and  (except 
the  Lord  pour  down  his  Spirit)  an  undone  generation."  ^ 
Among  the  specific  characteristics  of  those  who  were 
coming  out  from  the  New  England  home  influences  of 
that  day,  he  instanced  "  many  that  are  profane,  drunkards, 
swearers,  lascivious,  scoffers  at  the  powers  of  godliness, 
despisers  of  those  that  are  good,  disobedient."  "^  In  the 
election  sermon  for  1670,  the  Rev.  Samuel  Danforth,  of 
Roxbury,  was  sure  that  the  good  days  were  long  before 
his  own,  "  Who  is  there  left  among  you,"  he  asked, 
"that  saw  these  [New  England]  churches  in  their  first 
glory?  And  how  do  you  see  them  now?  Are  they  not 
in  your  eyes  in  comparison  thereof  as  nothing?"^ 

And  this  carries  us  back,  step  by  step,  to  the  generation 
immediately  following  that  of  the  first  settlers  of  New 
England,  in  our  search  for  the  time  when — if  ever  before 
these  Sunday-school  days — children  were  properly  in- 
structed in  religion  by  their  parents  in  the  home  circle, 
and  gave  evidence  of  that  parental  faithfulness  in  their  be- 
half, as  they  went  out  into  the  world.  In  the  light  of  the 
facts  of  history,  is  it  quite  worthy  of  a  thoughtful  and  an 
intelligent  Christian  of  to-day  to  take  up  this  funereal 
wail  over  the  departed  glory  of  family  religion,  which  has 
come  echoing  down  through  the  centuries,  and  to  add  to 
it  the  already  antiquated  suggestion,  that  the  mythical 
corpse  was  murdered  by  a  supposed  Sunday-school  rival  ? 

There  is  a  lesson  to  be  learned  just  here,  as  at  many 
another  point,  from  the  customs  and  traditions  of  the 
Jews.  The  Jews  have  their  tradition  of  a  long-ago  day 
when  all   parents  were   competent  and   faithful   in  the 

1  In  Prince's  Christian  History,  p.  97  f,  ^  Ibid.  ^  Ibid.,  pp.  94-97. 


ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  THE  FAMILY.  1 83 

religious  training  of  their  children  in  the  family;  but  the 
Talmud  teaches  that  that  day  was  considerably  more  than 
two  thousand  years  ago;  and  that  after  it  had  passed 
away,  if  indeed  Joshua  ben  Gamla  had  not  revived  God's 
agency  of  the  synagogue-school,  making  attendance  at  it 
obligatory  on  all  children,  "the  law  would  have  been 
forgotten  in  Israel."  ^  And  since  the  revival  of  the  syna- 
gogue-school, a  Jewish  parent  is  deemed  faithful  to  his 
children,  only  while  he  secures  to  them  the  influences 
and  instructions  of  that  school  in  addition  to  all  that  he 
can  do  for  them  in  his  home  at  its  very  best.^  And  in  this 
fact  a  Christian  parent  may  find  a  suggestion  of  his  duty 
as  a  Christian  parent.  The  ideal  of  family  religious  in- 
struction includes  wise  and  faithful  parental  teaching,  in 
preparation  for  and  in  co-operation  with  the  best  available 
instruction  in  the  divinely  appointed  church-school  agency. 
And  the  measure  and  the  quality  of  such  religious  instruc- 
tion in  the  family  was  never  so  great  and  so  good  as  at  the 
present  day;  and  this  because  of  the  unvarying  tendency 
of  the  widely  extended  Sunday-school  agency  to  promote 
and  to  improve  religious  instruction  in  the  family. 

And  here  I  rest  the  exhibit  of  the  Sunday-school,  in  its 
origin,  in  its  development,  in  its  influence,  in  its  disclosed 
power,  and  in  its  undisclosed  possibilities.  I  have  said 
nothing  so  far  of  its  defects  or  of  its  lack,  or  of  the  faults 
and  the  follies  in  its  popular  management;  not  because  I 
deem  these  slight  or  few,  but  because  I  would  give  em- 
phasis to  its  sacredness,  and  to  the  grandeur  of  its  mission 
in  spite  of  them.     The  deficiencies  and  the  abuses  of  the 

1  Baba  Bathra,  21  a.  *  See  p.  152  f.,  ante. 


1 84  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 

Sunday-school  are  mainly  the  result  of  its  undervaluing, 
and  its  consequent  neglect,  by  the  Church  of  Christ  and 
by  the  more  prominent  representatives  of  that  Church — 
in  the  family,  in  the  pulpit,  in  the  college,  and  in  the 
theological  seminary.  Seeing,  therefore,  as  I  have  seen, 
this  chosen  child  and  this  designated  heir  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  left  to  itself  as  a  homeless  waif,  subject  even 
to  the  scorn  and  the  sneer  of  disciple  and  of  rabbi,  I  am 
less  ready  to  point  at  the  obvious  signs  of  its  vagrant  life 
and  of  its  vicious  surroundings,  than  to  take  it  by  the 
hand  and  bring  it  again  into  the  very  centre  of  the  circle 
where  our  Lord  himself  is  teaching,  in  order  that  his 
voice  may  be  heard  afresh,  saying  of  this  object  of  his 
love:  "See  that  ye  despise  not  one  of  these  little  ones;  for 
I  say  unto  you,  that  in  heaven  their  angels  do  always  be- 
hold the  face  of  my  Father  which  is  in  heaven;"  and  in 
order  that  there  may  be  a  new  force  to  his  words  con- 
cerning the  primary  mission  of  his  disciples:  "Go  ye 
therefore,  and  make  scholars  of  all  the  nations,  baptizing 
them  into  the  name  of  the  Father  and  of  the  Son  and  of 
the  Holy  Ghost:  teaching  them  to  observe  all  things 
whatsoever  I  commanded  you :  and  lo,  I  am  with  you 
alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world." 

When  the  Sunday-school  is  viewed  in^this  light,  it  will 
be  practicable  and  profitable  to  discuss  fairly  the  methods 
of  its  improvement  and  of  its  wise  conduct.  And  so,  I 
trust,  we  are  now  qualified  to  enter  upon  that  discussion. 


LECTURE   V. 


THE    SUNDAY-SCHOOL:     ITS    MEMBERSHIP 
AND   ITS   MANAGEMENT. 


V. 

THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL:     ITS  MEMBERSHIP  AND 
ITS  MANAGEMENT. 

The  Missionary  Feature  of  Modern  Sunday-school  Beginnings. — 
Church  and  Mission  and  Pioneer  Sunday-schools  of  To-day. — 
What  Is  and  what  Ought  to  Be. —  Children  and  the  Child-hke 
Belong  in  the  Sunday-school. — Power  of  Numbers  in  Promoting 
Sympathy. — Taking  in  Truth  by  Absorption. —  Evangelizing 
through  the  Sunday-school. — Two  Specimen  Schools  in  Con- 
necticut.—  How  Sunday-schools  are  Managed. —  How  they 
Ought  to  Be. —  Church  Control. —  Church  Direction. —  Church 
Support. — The  Ideal  Future. 

Who  are  in  the  Sunday-school  of  to-day,  and  how  the 
Sunday-school  of  to-day  is  managed,  are  simple  questions 
of  fact.  Who  ought  to  be  in  the  Sunday-school  as  the 
church  Bible-school,  and  how  the  Sunday-school  as  the 
church  Bible-school  ought  to  be  managed,  are  questions 
of  principle,  involving  the  whole  theory  of  church  organi- 
zation, and  of  legitimate  church  activities.  Both  these 
lines  of  questioning  have  their  practical  value  in  a  discus- 
sion like  this,  and  both  demand  recognition. 

In  its  modern  revival,  under  the  lead  of  Robert  Raikes, 
the  Sunday-school  was  designed  chiefly  for  the  reaching 
and  the  teaching  of  otherwise  neglected  children,  those 
whom  its  new  apostle  characterized  as  "little  raga- 
muffins."    In  England,  the  missionary  and  evangelistic 

187 


1 88  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

idea  is  still  peculiarly  associated  with  the  Sunday-school; 
even  though  the  distinction  between  "  ragged  schools  " 
and  church  Sunday-schools  is  now  clearly  recognized 
there.  It  is  not  generally  understood,  in  England,  that 
a  Sunday-school  attached  to  a  church  is  one  of  the 
regular  services  of  the  church,  which  all  the  children  of 
the  church  ought  to  attend  as  a  matter  of  course;  nor  is 
the  Sunday-school  in  England  commonly  looked  upon 
as  the  place  of  Bible-study  and  teaching  for  all  the  mem- 
bers of  the  congregation,  as  it  has  been  in  Wales  from 
the  beginning  of  its  revival  there. 

In  America,  the  modern  Sunday-school  began  on  the 
English  plan;  but  it  was  speedily  adapted  to  the  new 
conditions  existing  here;  and  it  now  presents  several 
distinct  phases  of  Christian  effort  with  corresponding 
differences  in  its  membership.  There  are  still  mission 
Sunday-schools  in  our  American  cities,  composed  diiefly 
or  wholly  of  children  of  the  poorer  and  of  the  more  vicious 
classes  in  their  neighborhood.  But  as  there  are  no  per- 
manent and  well-defined  class  distinctions  in  the  American 
population,  these  mission-schools  are  rather  outside  re- 
cruiting-stations than  camp  training-posts  for  the  Christian 
host.  Scholars  who  are  rightly  influenced  by  these 
mission-schools  pass  out  from  them  into  schools  of  a 
higher  grade  elsewhere.  Meanwhile  Sunday-schools  in 
the  local  churches  include,  as  a"  rule,  the  children  of  the 
church-members  and  of  the  other  members  of  the  con- 
gregation, together  with  more  or  fewer  children  from 
outside  families;  also  young  people  and  adults  in  varying 
numbers  in  different  communities. 

As  distinct,  however,  from  the  local  church-school  on 
the  one  hand,  and  from  the  city  mission-school  on  the 


ITS  MEMBERSHIP.  1 89 

other  hand,  there  is  the  pioneer  Sunday-school,  in  its 
incipient  form  or  in  its  development,  which  has  largely 
shaped  the  characteristics  of  the  representative  American 
Sunday-school.  On  the  borders  of  our  advancing  and 
extending  population,  beyond  the  limits  of  existing 
church  organizations,  a  Sunday-school  is  gathered  as  the 
first  and  for  the  time  as  the  only  religious  assembly  of 
the  neighborhood.  Into  that  Sunday-school  the  children 
are  brought  together.  Through  the  children,  the  parents, 
as  far  as  may  be,  are  led  to  attend  it.  With  the  growth 
of  numbers  and  interest,  other  services  of  worship  and  of 
preaching  are  added  to  the  service  of  Bible-study.  By 
and  by  a  church  organization  is  effected  as  an  outgrowth 
of  the  Sunday-school.  In  such  a  case  the  Sunday-school 
is  likely  to  retain  its  prominence  as  a  gathering-place  for 
young  and  old  alike.  It  had  the  first  place  in  the  affec- 
tions and  confidence  of  the  community  about  it;  and 
that  place  it  will  not  lose  without  a  reason.  It  may 
be  that  such  a  pioneer  Sunday-school  is  in  the  fore-front 
of  civilization  in  our  newer  states  or  territories;^  or  a^rain 
in  a  quarter  of  a  city  which  is  filling  up  with  the  city's 
growth;  or  in  a  newly  started  factory  village;  or  in  a 
border  district  of  a  country  township  of  our  older  states 
on  the  Atlantic  coast.^     In  any  case  the  membership  of 

1  Missionary  workers  sent  out  by  the  American  Sunday  School  Union  have 
gone  with  the  advancing  wave  of  population,  since  the  formation  of  the  society 
in  1824.  They  have  organized  neighborhood  Sunday-schools  at  the  average 
rate  of  three  a  day  for  n.ow  sixty-four  years  ;  aggregating  nearly  eighty  thou- 
sand schools,  with  a  membership  of  nearly  four  millions.  And  this  is  an 
imdenominational  work,  in  addition  to  all  that  has  meanwhile  been  done  by 
the  denominations  severally. 

*  As  a  rule,  every  new  attempt  to  pre-empt  a  field  for  a  church  organiza- 
tion in  a  city  or  a  village,  nowadays,  begins  with  the  gathering  of  a  Sunday- 


1 90  THE  SLNDA  F-  SCHO  OL  : 

such  a  Sunday-school  is  not  Hkely  to  be  Hmited  to  chil- 
dren from  unevangelized  homes;  nor,  indeed,  to  children 
from  any  homes. 

The  responsible  oversight  and  management  of  the  Sun- 
day-school in  America  are  as  varied  in  their  source  and 
in  their  form  as  are  the  nature  and  the  composition  of  its 
membership.  The  earlier  Sunday-schools  here,  patterned 
on  the  Robert  Raikes  idea,  were  organized  by  individuals 
or  by  an  association  of  individuals,  and  were  independent 
of  church  control.  Even  where,  in  process  of  time,  the 
Sunday-schools  in  our  older  communities  were  practically 
adopted  by  local  churches,  the  original  independency  of 
organization  and  management  was  in  many  a  case  con- 
tinued; so  that  to-day  it  is  not  an  unusual  thing  to  find 
a  church  Sunday-school  wholly  distinct  in  its  organization 
and  control  from  the  church  of  which  it  claims  to  be  a 
part.  It  has  its  own  "constitution  and  by-laws,"  it 
chooses  its  own  officers,  appoints  its  own  teachers,  directs 
its  own  work,  collects  and  disburses  its  own  funds,  with 
an  independency  that  could  not  be  exceeded  if  it  were 
itself  a  General  Council  of  the  churches  of  undivided 
Christendom. 

In  many  cases,  it  is  true, — and  it  is  well  that  it  is  true, — 
this  independent  organization  of  the  Sunday-school  has 

school.  It  matters  not  what  is  the  denomination,  the  method  is  the  same. 
The  lessons  of  experience  in  the  field  of  church  extension  during  the  past 
sixty  years  have  shown  the  value  of  reaching  the  parents  through  the  young, 
instead  of  hoping  to  reach  the  young  only  through  the  parents.  Said  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Daniel  Curry  on  this  point:  "  Not  only  is  there  force  in  the  famil- 
iar illustration  of  the  Alpine  shepherd's  taking  up  the  lambs  in  his  arms 
when  he  would  induce  the  mother  sheep  to  follow  him,  as  that  illustration 
is  generally  understood,  but  it  has  an  added  force  when  we  realize  how  much 
easier  it  is  to  carry  two  little  lambs  under  one's  arms,  than  to  lug  one  old 
sheep  up  hill." 


ITS  MANAGEMENT.  I9I 

been  formally  abandoned,  and  the  control  of  the  school 
surrendered  to  the  local  church  with  which,  before,  it 
was  linked.  In  the  case  of  entire  denominations, — such 
as  the  Protestant  Episcopal,  the  Methodist  Episcopal, 
and  the  Presbyterian, — the  control  of  the  Sunday-school 
has  been  unequivocally  asserted  by  the  general  church 
authority.  Yet,  even  in  these  denominations,  where  in  a 
particular  case  a  Sunday-school  organization  has  preceded 
the  organization  of  a  church  in  its  immediate  field,  the 
early  feeling  of  independency  quite  naturally  continues 
to  have  more  or  less  sway  with  the  Sunday-school  mem- 
bership after  church  control  over  the  Sunday-school  has 
been  assumed. 

And  thus  it  is  that  there  are  anomalies  in  the  organi- 
zation of  Sunday-schools,  and  practical  difficulties  in  their 
direction  and  control.  So  far  as  to  the  existing  member- 
ship and  management  of  the  Sunday-school  of  to-day. 
Now  as  to  the  true  ideal  in  both  these  spheres. 

The  membership  of  the  Sunday-school  ought  to  include 
the  children  and  the  child-like  from  the  families  of  church- 
members  and  of  non-church-members, — all  who  need 
Bible-study  and  are  capable  of  it.  Under  the  old  Jewish 
system  of  synagogue-school  training,^  every  child  of  a 
Jewish  parent  was  to  be  a  scholar  in  a  synagogue-school 
from  the  time  he  was  six  years  old.  Even  in  the  choicest 
Jewish  home,  the  parents  had  no  right  to  limit  a  child's 
advantages  to  his  home  religious  training,  after  he  had 
come  to  that  age.  Entering  the  synagogue  Bible-school 
thus  early,  the  Jewish  scholar  never  came  to  an  age  for 
graduation  from  that  school.     He  was  to  continue  in  it 

'  Sec  Locture  l.,f>assim. 


192  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

during  his  earthly  Hfe-course,  and  at  death  he  was  sup- 
posed to  pass  on  into  the  heavenly  Bible-school  beyond. 
There  were  three  departments  in  the  synagogue  Bible- 
school,  making  three  grades  of  its  membership.  The 
primary  department  comprised  scholars  from  six  to  ten 
years  of  age.  The  intermediate  department  included 
those  from  ten  years  old  to  fifteen.  The  senior  depart- 
ment was  made  up  of  all  who  were  over  fifteen  years  old. 
And  this  threefold  classification,  with  due  allowances 
for  different  degrees  of  maturity  at  a  specified  age,  is  a 
natural  and  reasonable  one  for  Bible-schools,  or  Sunday- 
schools,  always  and  everywhere. 

Nearly  sixty  years  ago,  while  the  Sunday-school  in  its 
new  form  was  but  a  minor  agency  of  religious  instruction 
in  America,  so  wise  and  conservative  a  teacher  of  teachers 
as  the  Rev.  Dr.  Archibald  Alexander,  of  Princeton,  said 
of  the  scope  and  limits  of  Sunday-school  membership: 
"  It  appears  to  me  .  .  .  that  the  system  of  Sunday-school 
instruction  might  be  greatly  enlarged,  both  as  it  relates 
to  the  pupils  received  under  .  .  .  tuition,  and  as  it  relates 
to  the  subjects  of  instruction.  In  regard  to  the  former, 
my  plan  would  be  so  large  as  to  include  all  persons  who 
need  instruction,  from  the  infant  of  two  years  up  to  the 
man  of  a  hundred  years  of  age.  .  .  .  My  idea  is,  that  the 
whole  church  should  form  one  great  Sabbath-school,  and 
that  all  the  people  should  be  disciples  or  teachers;  or 
sometimes  the  one  and  sometimes  the  other,  according 
to  circumstances."  ^  And  this  mode  of  instruction  Dr. 
Alexander  held  to  be  "  as  much  authorized  [in  the  Bible] 
as  public  preaching,  and  in  its  place  as  necessary." 

1  Suggestions  in  Vindication  of  Sunday-schools,  (1829,)  p.  24  f. 


ITS  MEMBERSHIP  1 93 

Similarly,  some  twenty  years  since,  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Thomas  Smyth,  of  Charleston,  long  a  minister  of  note 
and  of  influence  in  the  Presbyterian  Church,  South,  in  a 
personal  letter  to  me,  (in  which  he  laid  it  upon  me,  "in 
Christ's  name,  and  with  the  authority  in  love,  of  such  an 
one  as  Paul  the  aged  "  to  pursue  my  studies  and  writings 
in  this  very  direction),  thus  described  what  he  character- 
ized as  the  chiefest,  if  not  the  only  hope  of  the  Christian 
church:  "The  revival  of  a  Sunday-school  of  Christ,  as 
one  of  the  services  of  the  church,  instituted  by  Christ 
and  demanded  by  the  very  terms  of  his  Commission,  that 
all  converted  by  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  should  be 
matriculated  as  disciples;  that  is  as  pupils  or  learners,  in 
his  school,  on  his  holy  day,  with  his  Bible  as  their  text- 
book, and  with  his  taught  as  their  teachers;  there  to  be 
taught  systematically  all  things  whatsoever  he  hath  com- 
manded; that  is,  the  'all  Scripture,'  which  is  'able  to 
make  .  .  .  wise  unto  salvation  through  faith  which  is  in 
Christ  Jesus.' ^  This  school  ought,  according  to  the  Com- 
mission, to  include  all  in  the  congregation,  both  old 
and  young,  as  teachers  or  as  learners,  with  the  pastor  as 
the  assistant  superintendent,  Christ  as  the  chief  and  infal- 
lible Superintendent,  and  the  Holy  Spirit  as  the  glorious 
Monitor  and  Inspirer.  Christ  has  in  this  [agency]  pro- 
vided for  all  that  he  promised,  and  at  first  bestowed,  and 
all  that  the  Church  has  by  its  neglect  lost  and  is  losing, — 
the  restoration  of  belief,  the  divine  authority  of  Scripture, 
the  full  efficiency  of  the  ministry,  and  the  gospel  as  the 
power  of  God,  and  the  wisdom  of  God,  to  the  salvation 
of  innumerable  souls." 

^  2  Tim.  3  :  15,  16. 


194  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

And  no  more  than  Dr.  Archibald  Alexander  could  Dr. 
Thomas  Smyth  be  reckoned  a  Sunday-school  enthusiast 
or  specialist,  because  of  his  taking  this  enlarged  view  of  the 
duty  and  the  gain  of  systematic  Bible-study  by  the  entire 
membership  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  and  by  all  who  would 
come  under  the  influence  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  in  the 
school  of  Christ's  appointing.  Indeed,  so  conservative  a 
body  as  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
has  formally  declared  "that  it  is  exceedingly  desirable 
that  the  entire  congregation,  old  and  young,  be  perma- 
nently connected  with  the  Sunday-school,  either  as 
scholars  or  teachers;"^  and  it  has  recommended  to  its 
local  church  authorities  "to  put  forth  practical  and  per- 
sistent efforts  to  enlist  their  entire  congregations  in 
systematic  Bible-study  and  teaching  in  connection  with 
the  Sunday-school."^ 

Yet  with  all  the  emphasis  thus  laid  by  fathers  in  Israel 
and  by  Church  Assemblies  on  the  importance  and  the 
duty  of  congregational  Bible-study,  as  a  divinely  ap- 
pointed means  of  grace,  how  common  it  is  for  a  church- 
member  to  feel  that  if  he  listens  to  pulpit  preaching,  in 
connection  with  the  service  of  public  worship,  it  matters 
little  whether  he  has  a  part  in  social  Bible-study,  or  not. 
And  how  much  more  frequently  you  hear  expressed  the 
fear  that  the  service  of  Bible-study  is  deemed  by  its 
attendants  a  substitute  for  the  preaching  service,  than  the 
fear  that  the  preaching  service  is  deemed  by  its  attendants 
a  substitute  for  the  service  of  Bible-study.  Therefore  it 
is  that  there  is  still  need  of  repeated  declarations  of  the 
truth  that  the  service   of  interlocutory  Bible-study,  in 

'  Moore's  Presbyterian  Digest,  1886,  p.  507  f. 
^  Ibid.,  p.  840.     See,  also,  p.  772. 


ITS  MEMBERSHIP.  I9S 

connection  with  the  public  worship  of  God,  is  a  service 
of  primal  importance  in  the  Church  of  Christ;  a  service 
which  cannot  rightly  be  neglected  by  any  disciple  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  who  is  capable  of  bearing  a  part  in  it; 
a  service  which  was  given  a  foremost  place  in  our  Lord's 
plans  of  evangelizing,  and  which  has  never  been  assigned 
by  him  to  a  secondary  place  in  the  training  agencies  of 
his  Church. 

In  many  a  community  in  America  the  true  ideal  of  the 
church  Bible-school  is  practically  realized ;  the  young 
and  the  old  of  the  entire  congregation  being  together  in 
the  social  study  of  the  Word  of  God,  at  one  of  the  chief 
and  regular  services  of  the  house  of  God.*  In  still  more 
communities  a  goodly  number  of  adults  are  found  with 
the  children  in  the  Sunday-school;  and  these  adults  are 
always  the  more  intelligent  and  responsive  hearers  of 
pulpit  preaching  because  of  their  added  knowledge 
through  Bible-study.^    Thirty  years  ago  a  superintendent 

1  In  one  instance  I  visited  a  Sunday-school  having  nearly  two  thousand 
members.  It  was  the  Sunday-school  of  a  church  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
members ;  and  absolutely  every  one  of  those  church-members  had  a  place  in 
the  Sunday-school,  either  as  teacher  or  scholar.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Asa  Bullard, 
of  Massachusetts,  told,  in  my  hearing,  of  a  church  in  his  state,  with  a  mem- 
bership of  five  hundred  and  thirty-six,  of  which  number  five  hundred  and 
twelve  had  a  place  in  the  Sunday-school.  "  The  minister  in  charge  of  this 
church,"  said  Dr.  Bullard,  "  would  visit  one  of  his  members  who  absented 
himself  from  Sunday-school,  to  plead  with  him  against  this  dereliction  of  duty, 
as  if  he  had  given  up  family  worship." 

*  At  a  Sunday-school  in  Norwich,  Connecticut,  as  I  stood  in  the  desk,  on 
one  occasion,  I  saw  on  one  hand  the  governor  of  the  state  sitting  as  the 
teacher  of  a  class ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  the  mayor  of  the  city  was  a 
scholar  in  a  class  composed  of  prominent  business  and  professional  men  in 
his  city.  Again  I  saw,  in  a  Fairfield  County  Sunday-school,  the  wife  of  the 
superintendent  sitting  as  a  scholar  in  a  class,  to  the  membership  of  which  she 
had  returned  after  being  for  twenty-five  years  a  teacher  in  the  school.  Lack- 
ing now  the  strength  to  teach,  she  did  not  lack  the  heart  to  learn. 


1 96  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

in  a  Connecticut  Sunday-school  pointed  me  with  pride 
to  his  "spectacle  class;"  every  member  of  which  was  a 
mother  in  Israel,  old  enough  to  require  the  aid  of  glasses 
in  reading.  At  the  present  time,  in  a  Bible-class  which  I 
have  the  privilege  of  leading  every  week  in  my  Philadel- 
phia home,  scholars  of  three  generations  from  one  family 
often  sit  side  by  side  in  the  social  study  of  the  same 
Bible  lesson ;  nor  is  the  youngest  of  these  scholars  too 
young,  or  the  oldest  too  old,  to  enjoy  and  to  profit  by 
the  teachings  of  God's  Word. 

Apart,  indeed,  from  the  immediate  advantage  to  the 
adult  Bible  students,  from  their  share  in  the  service  of 
Bible -study  in  the  Sunday-school,  there  is  an  obvious 
^  gain  to  the  character  and  standing  of  the  Sunday-school, 
in  the  estimation  of  children  and  youth,  through  its 
being  deemed  the  place  for  the  study  of  the  Bible  by 
those  to  whom  they  look  up  with  loving  reverence. 
"How  can  we  keep  our  young  people  from  quitting 
the  Sunday-school  when  they  have  grown  up  ?  "  was  a 
question  proposed  at  a  Sunday-school  conference  some 
years  ago.  Quickly  there  came  the  pertinent  answer: 
"Build  a  wall  of  old  folks  between  them  and  the  door,  so 
high  that  they'll  never  climb  over  it."  And  that  answer 
covers  an  important  truth  concerning  the  method  of  hav- 
ing and  holding  a  proper  Sunday-school  membership. 

There  is  a  power  in  numbers  in  the  Sunday-school,  not 
only  as  promoting  enthusiasm  in  the  school  as  a  whole, 
but  as  quickening  and  aiding  the  mental  perceptions  and 
the  spiritual  life  of  the  individual  scholar.  And  just  here 
it  is,  as  I  have  before  suggested,  that  there  is  a  positive 
gain  to  the  child  who  has  choicest  instruction  at  home, 
from  his  attendance  at  a  well-conducted  Sunday-school. 


ITS  MEMBERSHIP.  1 97 

At  the  best  the  teachings  and  the  influence  of  parents  arc 
from  above  the  child.  They  come  down  upon  the  child. 
The  child  must  look  up  to  take  them  in.  In  addition  to 
all  that  can  be  done  in  this  way  for  a  child,  there  is  room 
for  both  teachings  and  influence  from  alongside  of  the 
child;  to  be  received  by  him  while  he  is  on  his  own  plane 
of  thought  and  feeling,  and  to  enter  his  mind  and  heart 
through  his  sympathies.  The  best  intentioned,  the 
wisest,  and  the  most  loving  parent  in  the  world,  cannot 
supply  this  lack  as  other  children  can  supply  it.  Many 
a  Christian  parent  has  been  surprised  by  a  child's  coming 
home  from  Sunday-school  full  of  interest  in  an  important 
thought  which  had  been  expressed  to  him  by  a  fellow- 
scholar,  or  impressed  upon  him  by  a  class-exercise  or  a 
school-service,  when  that  very  thought  had  been  repeat- 
edly emphasized  to  the  child,  by  his  parents,  from  above 
him,  without  being  made  a  part  of  his  mind-treasure,  as 
now  it  had  come  to  be  through  his  companionship  of 
feeling  with  its  utterer,  or  its  utterers.  The  very  compo- 
sition of  the  family  forbids  this  massing  of  children  of 
the  same  age  to  receive  abiding  impressions  of  truth 
through  and  by  their  massing;  and  here,  it  may  be,  is  a 
reason  why  God  ordained  the  Sunday-school  as  a  com- 
plement of  the  family  for  the  children's  wise  training. 

Dr.  Bushnell  recognized  the  value  of  this  sympathetic 
"taking-in  exercise"  by  children  in  assemblies,  when  he 
urged  the  training  of  the  little  ones  in  services  of  sacred 
song  and  of  Scripture  recitation.  "The  Moravians,"  he 
said,  "train  their  children  largely  by  the  singing  of 
hymns  that  centre  in  Christ  and  true  Christ-worship.  So, 
dismissing  partly  the  idea  of  a  school,  [for  didactic  teach- 
ing,] and  organizing  a  discipleship  in  hosannas,  we  may 


198  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

put  our  children  through  songs  of  the  Lamb, — chants, 
htanies,  sonnets,  holy  madrigals,  and  doxologies, — such 
and  so  many,  and  full  of  Christ's  dear  love,  that  they  will 
sing  Christ  into  their  very  hearts,  and  be  inwardly  imbued 
and  quickened  by  him.  At  the  same  time  there  will  be 
rehearsed,  with  these.  Scripture  lessens  that  have  the 
sense  of  God's  authority  and  power  and  forgiveness  and 
divine  pastorship  and  child-cherishing  friendship  in  them ; 
everything,  in  short,  that  most  appreciates  God  and  the 
precious  thoughts  of  God;  everything  that  belongs  to  a 
penitent,  adoring,  tender,  faithfully  kept,  patiently  endur- 
ing, bravely  steadfast,  gloriously  trustful  character.  And 
these  rehearsed  responsively,  or  by  all  together,  and 
blended  with  high  song,  will  make  up  a  taking-in  exer- 
cise, whereby  Christ  will  be  entered  more  and  more 
deeply  into  the  secret  life  of  the  children."^ 

Many,  very  many  children  have  thus  been  helped  into 
Christ-likeness  by  the  influence  of  the  united  prayings 
and  praisings  and  recitings  of  the  Sunday-school.  And 
very  many  more  children  ought  to  have  the  advantage  of 
this  kind  of  training  service,  in  addition  to  all  that  can  be 
done  for  them  in  the  household.  Nor  is  the  gain  of 
numbers  as  a  means  of  promoting  a  sympathetic  taking- 
in  of  truth  by  such  a  service  limited  to  children,  in  the 
Sunday-school.  Older  persons  are  uplifted  and  swept 
along  thereby,  as  has  been  shown  in  numberless  in- 
stances. Hence  it  is  that  the  Sunday-school  has  power 
for  good  hardly  less  through  the  collective  influence  of 
its  class  membership,  and  through  its  general  exercises 
as  led  from  the  superintendent's  desk,  than  through  the 

1  Sermon  on  God's  Thoughts  Fit  Bread  for  Children,  pp.  32-34. 


9r  /TS  MEMBERSHIP.  1 99 

individual  instruction  secured  to  its  every  scholar.  And 
this  is  why  no  Christian,  young  or  old,  can  fail  to  be  a 
loser  through  lacking  a  share  in  the  exercises  of  the 
Sunday-school. 

But  it  is  never  enough  to  have  all  the  children  of  the 
church  and  of  the  congregation,  and  all  of  the  older  mem- 
bers of  the  church  and  of  the  congregation,  in  the  Sunday- 
school.  There  ought  always  to  be  a  goodly  number  of 
outside  children  in  the  membership  of  the  Sunday-school, 
whether  that  Sunday-school  be  in  city,  or  village,  or 
country.  The  primary  idea  of  the  Sunday-school,  as 
provided  for  in  the  Great  Commission,  as  prosecuted  by 
the  Early  Church,  and  as  put  into  operation  anew  by 
Robert  Raikes,  is  that  of  an  agency  for  making  scholars 
of  the  unevangelized;  and  that  idea  ought  never  to  be 
lost  sight  of  so  long  as  there  are  any  unevangelized  per- 
sons to  be  made  scholars  of  The  Church  ought  still,  as 
in  its  earliest  days,  to  make  "the  school  the  connecting 
link  between  herself  and  the  world;"  for  on  every  side, 
peculiarly  here  in  America,  there  are  families  unrepre- 
sented in  the  sanctuary,  which  can  be  reached  easier,  if 
not  only,  through  winning  their  children  into  the  Sun- 
day-school. Perhaps  the  need  and  the  possibilities  of  an 
increase  of  the  Sunday-school  membership  by  this  kind 
of  effort,  can  best  be  indicated  by  an  illustration  or  two 
out  of  the  Connecticut  Sunday-school  field,  at  a  time 
when  I  had  a  closer  knowledge  than  now  of  that  par- 
ticular field. 

I  will  not  name  the  localities,  for  the  passing  years 
may  have  changed  the  state  of  things  in  each  of  them.  I 
will  simply  describe  them  as  I  was  familiar  with  them. 
One  of  these  Sunday-schools  was  in  a  manufacturing 


200  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL:  ^ 

village,  with  a  sweep  of  farming  country  about  it.  It  was 
one  of  four  or  five  Sunday-schools  in  the  village,  and 
there  were  other  Sunday-schools  in  the  country  beyond. 
It  had  a  membership  of  about  two  hundred  (which  was 
fully  up  to  the  average  for  such  a  congregation  as  that 
with  which  it  was  connected),  when  a  superintendent  of 
some  experience  in  city  mission  methods  was  put  in 
charge  of  it.  At  once  he  set  himself  at  improving  the 
Sunday-school,  and  at  extending  its  membership.  He 
sought  and  secured  the  co-work  of  his  scholars  in  his 
evangelizing.  He  asked  them  to  invite  to  their  Sunday- 
school  any  child,  or  other  person,  who  attended  no  Sun- 
day-school or  other  church  service  elsewhere.  Each  new 
comer  thus  brought  in,  received  a  certificate  of  member- 
ship in  the  school;  while  the  scholar  who  had  brought  in 
the  new  comer  received  a  certificate  of  that  fact,  not  by 
way  of  reward,  but  as  a  simple  recognition  of  the  service 
rendered  to  the  school.  The  numbers  in  attendance  in- 
creased steadily. 

One  Sunday  a  little  girl  scholar  came  to  the  superin- 
tendent asking  if  she  could  receive  a  certificate  if  she 
brought  her  father  in.  "Certainly,"  was  the  prompt 
response;  and  the  next  Sunday  the  child  led  in  her  father, 
who  received  his  certificate  of  membership,  while  she 
received  hers  of  recognition.  The  warm  welcome  given 
to  the  father  so  won  his  heart  that  he  asked  if  he  should 
have  a  certificate  if  he  brought  in  his  wife.  "Of  course 
you  shall,"  said  the  superintendent;  and  so  both  parents 
became  scholars  in  that  Sunday-school.  Nor  did  the 
ingathering  stop  there;  for  cousins  and  uncles  and  aunts 
were  added  from  that  family  circle,  until  twelve  in  all 
were  of  the  school  membership.     At  the  close  of  a  year 


ITS  MEMBERSHIP.  20I 

that  Sunday-school  had  three  hundred  members  instead 
of  two,  while  no  other  Sunday-school  in  or  near  the 
village  had  lost  in  numbers. 

Non-church-goers  came  to  be  Sunday-school  scholars 
there.  New  comers  to  the  village  were  at  once  invited 
to  the  Sunday-school.  In  one  instance  a  family  which 
landed  in  New  York  from  a  foreign  shore  on  Thursday, 
reached  that  village  on  Saturday  evening;  and  the  next 
day  every  member  of  that  family  w'as  in  the  Sunday- 
school,  led  in  by  an  enthusiastic  and  watchful  scholar 
who  was  himself  a  foreigner.  Parents  and  children  from 
the  country  borders  of  the  township  were  looked  up  and 
invited  to  the  Sunday-school.  As  the  Sunday-school 
hour,  at  the  close  of  the  forenoon  service,  approached, 
there  would  be  a  quiet  gathering  about  the  church  door 
waiting  for  that  Sunday-school  to  begin.  Nor  was  tins 
other  than  a  gratifying  sign;  for  there  were  some  there 
who  could  not  understand  the  language  of  the  preacher, 
while  they  would  be  taught  in  their  own  tongue  in  the 
Sunday-school ;  others  had  walked  three,  four,  and  five 
miles, — mothers  bringing  their  children  in  their  arms,  or 
leading  them  by  their  side, — unable  to  reach  the  earlier 
service,  but  ready  to  be  in  the  Sunday-school  and  at  the 
afternoon  service  which  followed  it;  while  still  others 
were  as  yet  interested  only  in  the  Sunday-school,  but 
through  it  they  were  being  led  to  an  interest  in  all  the 
services  of  the  church.  In  fact,  it  may  be  said,  just  here, 
that  a  Sunday-school  can  hardly  be  doing  its  proper  work 
unless  it  has  more  or  fewer  scholars  who  as  yet  have  little 
love  for  any  other  service  than  the  Sunday-school  itself, 
which  is  so  far  their  only  linking  with  the  services  of  the 
sanctuary,  or  with  its  religion.     In  this  very  way  it  is 


202  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

that  a  Sunday-school  becomes  a  feeder  to  the  congre- 
gation, and  so  also  to  the  church. 

The  Sunday-school  of  which  I  am  speaking  grew  to 
four  hundred  members,  then  to  five  hundred,  then  to 
more  than  even  that.  Many  of  those  who  were  brought 
in  from  outside  by  its  evangelistic  work  became  active 
members  of  the  church.  The  church  of  which  that  Sun- 
day-school was  a  part  grew  in  numbers  and  influence. 
Other  Sunday-schools  of  the  village  and  beyond  were 
also  the  gainers  by  the  new  life  in  that  school.  The 
entire  village  and  the  entire  township  felt  the  impulse  of 
this  movement  in  the  direction  of  a  right  use  of  the  Sun- 
day-school, as  an  evangelizing  and  as  a  training  agency 
of  the  church.  And  what  was  done  to  extenc  the  mem- 
bership of  that  Sunday-school  might  be  doing,  and  ought 
to  be  doing,  in  lesser  or  larger  measure,  in  every  similar 
community  to-day.  Indeed,  without  some  such  work,  no 
church,  anywhere,  can  have  its  proper  Sunday-school 
membership. 

The  second  instance  which  I  cite,  is  that  of  a  Sunday- 
school  in  a  purely  country  township,  a  township  without 
a  village  in  it.  The  superintendent  of  this  Sunday-school 
had  no  city-mission  experience;  nor  had  he  any  special 
fitness  for  his  place,  save  a  quiet,  earnest  persistency  of 
purpose.  He  was  lacking  in  personal  magnetism,  and 
was  slow  and  heavy  in  his  manners.  His  Sunday-school 
was  a  small  one,  having,  say,  forty  or  fifty  scholars,  when 
he  was  chosen  as  its  superintendent.  He  wanted  the 
school  membership  increased;  but  he  knew  of  no  other 
way  of  bringing  this  about,  except  by  going  for  one 
person  at  a  time  and  sticking  at  him  until  he  had  him  in 
as  a  scholar.     He  fastened  his  eyes,  for  example,  on 


ITS  MEMBERSHIP.  203 

'Squire  Brown,  who  ought  to  be  in  Sunday-school  on 
his  own  account,  and  as  a  means  of  bringing  others  in. 
He  invited  'Squire  Brown,  accordingly,  to  join  one  of  the 
Bible  classes.  Then  he  asked  'Squire  Brown's  wife  to 
urge  her  husband  to  accept  his  invitation.  If  this  was 
not  sufficient,  he  had  'Squire  Brown's  children  ask  their 
father  to  come  to  their  Sunday-school.  Then,  perhaps, 
he  induced  other  members  of  the  Bible-class  to  join  in 
the  same  request;  and  he  went  to  the  pastor  to  have  him 
say  a  word  in  that  direction  to  'Squire  Brown.  This 
work  was  followed  up  untiringly,  as  though  the  super- 
intendent were  really  living  only  to  the  end  of  seeing 
'Squire  Brown  in  the  Sunday-school.  When  'Squire 
Brown  finally  came  in,  as  he  was  pretty  sure  to  do,  there 
was  at  once  another  outsider — from  the  congregation  or 
in  the  field  beyond  it — on  whom  the  superintendent's  eye 
was  fixed;  and  the  same  process  was  repeated  with  him. 

This  was  slow  work,  but  it  was  sure  work,  and  it  was 
a  work  which  any  determined  man  can  do.  As  the 
superintendent  grew  gray  in  the  service,  the  membership 
of  his  Sunday-school  was  enlarged.  At  last  he  had  one 
hundred  and  fifty  persons  in  that  school,  a  number  equal 
to  fully  nine-tenths  of  the  entire  congregation;  and  the 
Sunday-school  was  called  the  "Banner  Sunday-school" 
of  the  county.  It  had  evangelized  a  large  portion  of  the 
country  population  of  its  township,  while  it  had  quick- 
ened the  life  of  the  church  of  which  it  was  a  part;  and  it 
had  illustrated  a  work  which  ought  to  be  going  on  in 
every  country  township  of  America. 

In  all  our  country  townships,  peculiarly  so  in  our 
Atlantic  coast  states,  each  church  is  a  centre  of  light, 
illuminating  the  disk  of  a  larger  or  smaller  circle.     Be- 


204  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

yond  the  circumference  of  these  circles,  and  in  the  inter- 
stitial spaces  between  them,  there  are  regions  of  moral 
dimness,  if  not  of  absolute  darkness,  because  of  the  lack 
of  direct  influence  from  the  church  upon  the  dwellers 
there.  Some  of  these  neighborhoods  are  known  by- 
such  designations  as  "Hell  Hollow,"  "Devil's  Corner," 
"Sodom,"  and  the  like.  Still  more  of  them  are  recog- 
nized simply  as  neglected  or  unevangelized  districts.  In 
wellnigh  every  such  region,  all  our  country  over,  there 
are  children  and  youth  who  ought  to  be  of  the  Sunday- 
school  membership  of  their  township,  and  who  could  be 
secured  to  that  membership  if  proper  provision  and  effort 
were  made  in  their  behalf  by  the  churches  near  them. 

In  many  an  instance  these  little  ones  could  not  be  ex- 
pected to  attend  the  Sunday-school  at  the  church  centre, 
but  they  could  easily  be  gathered  into  neighborhood  or 
branch  Sunday-schools  in  their  immediate  vicinity.  The 
Sunday-school  membership  of  no  church  is  in  any  sense 
complete,  unless  it  includes  the  children  and  youth  of  the 
outside  neighborhoods  which  are  of  its  proper  field  of 
labor, — that  is  of  the  entire  field  which  can  easier  -be 
reached  by  it  than  by  any  other  church;  even  though 
from  two  to  ten  branch  Sunday-schools  have  to  be  started 
in  order  to  secure  this  additional  membership.  And 
only  by  some  such  method  of  home  evangelism  as  this, 
can  our  American  communities  be  brought  under  and 
held  by  the  training  influence  of  the  Church  of  Christ. 
It  is  within  bounds  to  say,  that  there  are  at  least  two  or 
three  millions  of  children  and  youth  now  outside  of  the 
Sunday-school,  who  could  be  added  to  its  membership 
within  the  current  year  by  systematic  and  persistent 
efforts  in  their  behalf,  by  the  churches  of  America  already 


ITS  MANAGEMENT.  205 

professing  an  interest  in  Sunday-school  work.  And  ob- 
viously there  would  be  a  better  prospect  of  bringing  into 
the  church  fold  the  parents  of  these  children  through 
their  children's  winsome  leading,  than  of  reaching  the 
parents  in  such  out-of-the-way  places  without  the  help  of 
their  children's  potent  influence. 

Closely  linked  with  this  question  of  the  proper  mem- 
bership of  the  Sunday-school,  is  the  question  of  the  Sun- 
day-school's proper  management.  Because  the  Sunday- 
school  is  a  department  of  the  church,  is  in  a  peculiar 
sense  one  of  the  regular  services  of  the  church,  the 
management  of  the  Sunday-school  naturally  vests  in  the 
local  church.  The  chief  services  of  the  church  are  wor- 
ship, teaching,  and  preaching.  There  is  no  reason  why 
one  of  these  services  more  than  another  should  be  under 
the  supervision  and  management  of  the  local  church. 
The  immediate  governing  agency  of  the  local  church 
should  be  responsible  for  the  management  of  the  Sunday- 
school,  as  the  church  teaching  service,  as  it  is  for  the 
management  of  the  church  service  of  worship,  and  of  the 
church  preaching  service.  In  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church,  it  is  the  rector  who  is  responsible  for  the  Sunday- 
school  management.  In  the  Presbyterian  Church,  this 
responsibility  rests  with  the  local  session, — the  pastor  and 
the  ruling  elders.  In  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
it  is  vested  in  a  Sunday-school  board,  as  representing 
the  quarterly  conference;  this  board  consisting  of  the 
preacher-in-charge,  a  committee  of  the  quarterly  confer- 
ence, and  the  officers  and  teachers  of  the  Sunday-schools. 
In  the  Baptist  and  in  the  Congregational  churches  the 
local  church  itself  retains  this  responsibility.  It  matters 
less  by  what  particular  method  the  church  discharges  its 


2o6  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

responsibility  of  Sunday-school  management,  than  that 
that  responsibility  be  clearly  recognized,  and  be  in  some 
way  discharged  by  the  church.  By  one  method  or 
another,  the  local  church  ought  to  perform  its  duty  of 
rightly  managing  its  Sunday-school. 

If  indeed,  as  is  often  the  case,  a  Sunday-school  exists 
quite  apart  from  any  local  church,  and  connected  with 
no  particular  religious  denomination,  the  management  of 
that  Sunday-school  cannot  be  from  outside  of  its  own 
membership.  But  that  is  no  real  departure  from  the 
principle  of  church  management.  Such  a  Sunday-school 
simply  stands  for  a  local  church,  for  the  time  being.  It 
is  the  germ  of  a  church.  Those  who  are  in  and  of  that 
Sunday-school  must  do  the  best  they  can  of  and  by 
themselves  until  a  local  church  organization  is  secured 
above  them ;  and  then  the  management  of  their  Sunday- 
school  should  pass  from  themselves  to  the  local  church 
authorities. 

And  what  does  Sunday-school  management  involve 
and  include?  Sunday-school  management  involves  and 
includes  control,  direction,  and  support;  not  one  of  these 
departments  alone,  nor  two,  but  all  three.  Unless  this 
be  well  understood  by  the  church,  the  Sunday-school 
will  not  be  properly  managed,  and  trouble  will  be  liable 
to  follow. 

The  church  ought  to  have  control  over  the  Sunday- 
school,  although,  of  course,  that  necessary  control  is  to 
be  exercised  with  as  little  show  and  with  as  much  con- 
siderateness  as  possible.  While,  as  a  rule,  the  selection 
of  teachers  may  wisely  be  left  with  the  superintendent, 
and  the  election  of  the  superintendent  and  of  other  officers 
may  wisely  be  left  with  the  body  of  teachers,  the  church, 


ITS  MANAGEMENT.  20/ 

directly  or  by  its  proper  representatives,  ought  to  have 
a  controlling  voice  in  approving  or  in  disapproving  the 
selection  of  teachers  and  the  election  of  officej-s.  And  a 
like  control  of  the  lessons  taught  and  of  the  moneys 
received  and  expended  by  the  Sunday-school,  ought  to 
be  exercised  by  the  church  in  its  official  capacity.  It  is 
by  no  means  necessary,  nor  is  it  ordinarily  desirable,  that 
the  church  should  take  the  initiative  in  all  these  matters; 
but  it  is  both  desirable  and  important  that  the  church 
should  retain  the  determinative  power  concerning  them 
all.  Generally  speaking,  no  representativ^e  committee  of 
the  church  could  better  initiate  and  carry  forward  the 
details  of  Sunday-school  management,  than  the  corps  of 
church-members  already  engaged  in  the  active  work  of 
the  Sunday-school;  but  the  responsibility  for  and  the 
control  over  this  representative  portion  of  its  membership 
ought  never  to  be  lost  sight  of  by  the  church ;  and  when- 
ever it  is  needful  there  ought  to  be  an  interposition, 
gently  and  firmly,  by  the  church  authorities  accordingly. 

The  church  ought  to  feel  its  responsibility  for  the  direc- 
tion of  the  Sunday-school;  for  the  direction  of  its  forms 
of  classification,  of  its  lines  of  teaching,  of  its  methods  of 
work,  of  its  range  of  beneficences,  of  the  nature  and 
character  of  its  special  exercises — its  missionary,  or  its 
anniversary,  or  its  festival  gatherings.  It  is  not  enough 
for  the  church  to  have  control  over  the  Sunday-school; 
the  church  ought  to  see  to  it  that  the  Sunday-school 
moves  on  in  right  lines  of  progress  continually.  This 
oversight,  by  the  church,  of  the  Sunday-school  in  its 
ordinary  and  in  its  extraordinary  activities,  like  the 
church  control  of  the  Sunday-school  itself,  should  be 
without  special   show  or  unnecessary  interference.      It 


2o8  THE  SUN  DA  Y-SCHOOL  : 

should  be  exercised  through,  rather  than  upon,  the 
teachers  and  officers  oT  the  Sunday-school ;  but  it  should 
be  a  practical  reality,  nevertheless.  In  the  line  of  this 
church  oversight  of  the  Sunday-school  there  might  prop- 
erly be  formal  examinations  of  the  Sunday-school  by  the 
church  authorities,  from  time  to  time,  and  detailed  reports 
to  the  church  of  the  doings  of  the  Sunday-school  at 
stated  seasons. 

The  church  which  controls  and  directs  the  Sunday- 
school  ought  to  make  due  provision  for  the  support  and 
sustenance  of  the  Sunday-school,  including  a  provision 
of  time  for  its  exercises,  of  rooms  for  its  gathering,  and 
of  money  for  its  expenses.  Indeed,  until  a  church  is 
ready  thus  to  provide  for  the  children  of  its  own  house- 
hold, its  claim  to  control  and  direct  those  children  would 
hardly  be  recognized  as  a  well-founded  claim.^ 

The  church  should  give  all  needed  time,  time  enough 
and  at  proper  hours,  to  the  Sunday-school  exercises, 
in  the  arrangement  of  its  Lord's  Day  services.  The 
Sunday-school,  as  the  church  teaching  agency,  and  as 

^  It  will  scarcely  be  questioned  by  any  careful  student  of  the  history  of  the 
modern  Sunday-school  movement,  that  the  anomalous  independency  of  the 
modern  Sunday-school  is  a  natural  consequence  of  the  state  of  things  which, 
as  a  rule,  made  it  necessary  for  the  lovers  of  the  church-school  idea  to  force 
their  way  into  recognition  against  the  active  opposition,  or  the  chilling  indif- 
ference, of  local  church  authorities  generally.  Now  that  the  Sunday-school 
has,  in  so  many  places,  secured  its  prominence  in  spite  of  the  local  church, 
there  is  small  cause  for  wonder  that  it  does  not,  in  every  case,  put  itself  under 
local  church  authority  gracefully  and  with  promptness.  Where,  indeed,  a 
church  is  ready  to  assume  full  control  of  its  Sunday-school,  it  is  important 
that  that  church  show  its  readiness  to  support  as  well  as  to  control  the  object 
of  its  new  care.  A  child  who  has  been  compelled  to  shift  for  himself  from  his 
very  infoncy,  is  not  likely  to  be  won  to  enthusiastic  submissiveness  by  the 
freshly  put  claim  of  his  parents  to  govern  him,  without  giving  hiii  board  and 
clothing. 


ITS  MANAGEMENT.  209 

the  agency  for  the  church  care  of  the  young,  should 
not  be  ground  between  the  upper  and  the  nether  mill- 
stones of  what  are  called  "regular  services;"  nor  yet 
appended,  as  prefix  or  as  suffix,  to  one  of  these  ser- 
vices. It  is  itself  a  regular  service, — as  regular,  as  valid, 
and  as  important  in  its  sphere,  as  any  other  divinely 
ordered  service  of  the  church.  Dogs,  not  children,  are 
to  be  fed  with  crumbs  from  the  family  table.  That 
agency  which  is  first  in  order  in  the  requirements  of  the 
Great  Commission,  should  not  be  assigned  to  a  secondary 
placejn  the  sanctuary  plans  of  the  church.  Whatever 
portion  of  the  day  is  best  for  the  Sunday-school,  all 
things  considered,  the  Sunday-school  ought  to  have;  and 
this  the  Sunday-school  can  have,  consistently  with  the 
interests  of  every  department  of  church  service ;  for  there 
never  is  need  of  conflict  between  God's  approved  agencies 
and  plans  for  the  prosecution  of  his  work  on  earth. 

The  church  should  see  to  it  that  the  Sunday-school  has 
proper  accommodations  for  its  gatherings.  The  Sunday- 
school  ought  not  to  be  thrust  into  the  "debasement"  of 
the  church — as  the  underground  conference-room  of  some 
of  our  city  and  village  churches  has  been  fittingly  desig- 
nated. Neither  should  it  be  stowed  away  in  a  garret 
gallery.  Nor  yet  should  it  be  impenned  in  the  stiff  pews 
of  the  unsocial  audience -room  of  the  church.  Fitly 
designed  and  appropriately  finished  and  furnished  rooms 
should  be  provided  for  its  occupancy.  If  a  new  structure 
is  needful  to  this  end,  then  a  new  structure  ought  to  be 
secured — at  whatever  cost  be  necessary.  No  house  for 
worship  can  be  called  complete  as  a  Christian  sanctuary, 
which  lacks  a  proper  place  in  its  appointments  for  the 
instruction  and  training  of  those  whose   presence  was 

14 


2IO  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

always  welcomed  by  our  Lord,  and  whose  hosannas  in  the 
temple  he  was  pleased  to  approve  as  "perfected  praise."^ 

The  church  should  fully  meet  the  legitimate  expenses  of 
the  Sunday-school,  The  Sunday-school  as  an  important 
department  of  regular  church  work  should  be  provided 
for  out  of  the  common  fund,  or  by  the  ordinary  income, 
which  is  secured  to  meet  the  other  fundamental  expenses 
of  the  church.  It  is  not  enough  for  a  church  to  put  its 
Sunday-school  on  the  list  of  missionary  or  charitable 
causes;  nor  is  it  defensible  for  a  church  to  leave  the 
officers  and  teachers  of  its  Sunday-school  to  bear  the 
expenses  of  necessary  outlay  in  the  ordinary  running  of 
the  Sunday-school  for  the  church.  A  reasonable  sum 
for  the  support  of  the  Sunday-school — in  its  supply  of 
lesson-helps  and  record  books  and  maps  and  music-books 
and  library  books  and  printed  forms  of  various  sorts,  and 
other  needful  appliances  —  should  be  included  in  the 
annual  estimate  of  church  expenses,  just  as  surely  as 
should  be  the  salary  of  the  pastor,  or  of  the  organist  or 

1  Sunday-school  architecture  is  now  a  recognized  feature  of  church  archi- 
tecture. It  is  no  longer  deemed  sufficient  to  have  a  room  prepared  for  pur- 
poses of  social  worship,  or  designed  as  a  smaller  auditorium  for  use  on  the 
occasion  of  mid-weclc  lectures,  which  may  be  occupied  by  the  Sunday-school 
at  the  hour  of  its  Sunday  sessions.  A  fitting  Sunday-school  building  is  de- 
signed primarily  and  chiefly  for  the  Sunday-school  itself.  It  includes  an 
arrangement  of  rooms  for  the  several  dep.artments  of  the  Sunday-school,  and 
often  for  separate  classes  in  those  several  departments,  all  of  which  rooms  can 
be  thrown  together,  in  sight  of  the  superintendent's  desk,  at  the  time  of  the 
opening  and  closing  e.verciscs  of  the  school,  and  again  can  be  separated  from 
one  another  during  the  time  of  the  class  teaching.  There  are  Sund.ay-school 
buildings  of  this  character,  which  include  an  arrangement  of  thirty  or  more 
rooms,  on  the  radiating  plan,  capable  of  being  thrown  together  or  separated 
at  the  tap  of  tlie  superintendent's  bell ;  and  improvements  in  the  construction 
and  arrangement  of  Sunday-school  buildings  are  now  the  study  of  some  of 
the  foremost  church  architects  in  America. 


ITS  MANA  CEMENT.  2 1 1 

chorister,  or  of  the  sexton  or  bell-ringer,  or  the  sums 
required  for  warming  and  lighting  the  house  of  worship. 
Even  the  child  of  the  bondwoman  was  provided  with 
"bread  and  a  bottle  of  water," ^  when  sent  out  into 
the  wilderness  by  the  father  of  the  faithful;  but  these 
members  of  the  Sunday-school  "are  not  children  of  the 
bondwoman, _but  of  the  free."^  Let  them,  therefore,  be 
recognized  and  cared  for  accordingly.^ 

It  need  hardly  be  added,  that  when  the  Sunday-school 
is  freely  acknowledged  as  the  first-born  son  of  the  church, 
— "  no  longer  a  bondservant,  but  a  son  ;  and  if  a  son,  then 
an  heir;"* — watched  over,  sympathized  with,  and  pro- 
vided for  by  the  parent  whom  it  represents  and  whose 
hope  of  continued  family  life  rests  on  it,  there  will  no 
longer  be  any  conflict  of  interest,  of  purpose,  or  of  author- 
ity, between  these  senior  and  junior  members  of  the 

1  Gen.  21  :  14.  2  Qal.  4  :  31. 

'  A  good  Sunday-school  costs  something ;  and  it  ought  to  be  worth  all  that 
it  costs.  In  the  early  days  of  the  modern  Sunday-school,  everything  that  the 
teachers  had  need  of  was  provided  for  them,  while  they  received  a  per  diem 
allowance  for  their  services.  Nowadays  there  are  Sunday-schools  where  the 
teachers,  while  working  for  nothing,  are  compelled  to  bear  their  own  expe'nses 
in  supplying  needful  helps  to  the  children  to  whom  they  minister  in  the  name  of 
the  church.  There  are,  indeed,  very  few  churches  where  the  annual  allowance 
for  the  entire  Sunday-school  expenses  equals,  or  approaches,  the  allowance 
freely  made  for  the  organist  and  church  choir.  In  the  case  of  a  church  in 
the  West  that  voted  ^8,000  a  year  to  its  pastor,  ^2,000  to  its  choir,  and  other 
outlays  in  proportion,  without  voting  a  single  dollar  for  its  Sunday-school 
expenses,  it  was  pithily  said  that  its  Sunday-school  might  properly  cry  out 
with  the  prodigal:  "How  many  hired  servants  of  my  father's  have  bread 
enough  and  to  spare,  and  I  perish  with  hunger !  "  The  needful  cost  of  a  Sun- 
day-school differs  widely  in  different  communities  ;  but  it  may  safely  be  said 
that  an  average  of  a  dollar  a  year  for  every  scholar  under  instruction  is  a  very 
moderate  outlay  for  ordinary  expenses, — including  such  items  as  are  suggested 
in  the  text  above.  ^  Gal.  4  :  7. 


212  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 

household  of  faith.  Having  received  the  "  adoption  of 
sons,"  ^  the  membership  of  the  Sunday-school  will  be 
ready  to  say  with  one  voice  to  the  church,  "  My  father, 
thou  art  the  guide  of  my  youth."^  And  when  the  mem- 
bership of  the  Sunday-school  includes  the  entire  member- 
ship of  the  church  and  of  the  congregation,  all  danger  of 
competition  in  activities,  or  of  jealousy  in  feeling,  is  re- 
moved beyond  the  pale  of  possibility.  Harmony  of  action 
will  come  with  a  consciousness  of  unity  of  life.  Family 
and  school  and  pulpit  will  operate  together  "for  the  per- 
fecting of  the  saints,  unto  the  work  of  ministering,  unto 
the  building  up  of  the  body  of  Christ."^  The  church,  of 
which  these  several  agencies  are  members,  will  "grow 
up  in  all  things  into  him,  which  is  the  head,  even  Christ; 
from  whom  all  the  body  fitly  framed  and  knit  together 
by  that  which  every  joint  supplieth,  according  to  the 
working  in  due  measure  of  each  several  part,  maketh 
the  increase  of  the  body  unto  the  building  up  of  itself 
in  love."* 

1  Gal.  4:5.  *  Jer.  3:4.  ^  Eph.  4:12.  *  Eph.  4  :  15,  16. 


LECTURE   VI. 

THE    SUNDAY-SCHOOL:     ITS    TEACHERS 
AND    THEIR    TRAINING. 


VI. 

THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL:     ITS  TEACHERS  AND 
THEIR    TRAINING. 

Class -grouping  an  Essential  of  the  Sunday-school.  —  Available 
Teaching  Material. —  Child -likeness  the  True  Standard. — 
Great  Truths  Best  Apprehended  in  Childhood. — Young  Teach- 
ers have  an  Advantage. — Wise  Classifying  of  Teachers. — Sup- 
posed Lack  of  Good  Teachers. — Where  the  Blame  Rests. — 
How  to  Train  Teachers. — Normal  Classes. — Practice  Classes. 
Preparation  Classes. —  Importance,  Methods,  and  Feasibility 
of  the  Weekly  Teachers'- Meeting. —  Selection  of  Teachers. — 
InstaUing  of  Teachers. —  Gain  of  Highest  Standard. 

It  is,  as  has  already  been  shown,  an  initial  idea  of  the 
Sunday-school  as  an  institution,  or  as  a  church  agency, 
that  its  members  be  grouped  in  classes  small  enough  to 
have  every  pupil  reached  individually  by  a  competent 
teacher;  these  several  classes  being  again  brought  to- 
gether in  a  combined  whole  for  general  exercises  of 
instruction  and  worship.  Therefore  it  is  that  the  supply 
of  teachers  is  an  important  factor  in  Sunday-school  work, 
and  that  the  number  of  teachers  in  the  Sunday-school 
must  increase  relatively  with  the  increase  of  Sunday- 
school  membership. 

The  practicability  of  securing  competent  teachers  in 
sufficient  numbers  for  the  Sunday-school  with  even  its 
present  membership — to  say  nothing  of  the  membership 

215 


2l6  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

as  it  ought  to  be — is  one  of  the  serious  questions  in  the 
minds  of  lovers  of  the  word  of  truth  and  of  the  work  of 
the  church,  when  they  contemplate  the  claims  and  the 
needs  of  the  Sunday-school  as  the  church  teaching  agency. 
In  the  settlement  of  this  question,  it  is  important  to  con- 
sider the  essential  qualifications  of  the  Sunday-school 
teacher,  and  the  feasibility  of  training  for  their  teaching 
work  those  who  are  available  for  this  service:  in  other 
words,  it  is  necessary  to  look  at  the  teaching  material 
which  is  within  reach  of  the  church,  and  the  methods  of 
its  improvement. 

It  needs  no  argument  to  show  that  not  every  teacher 
of  the  elementary  truths  of  religion  to  children  and  youth 
has  to  be  a  master  of  all  the  higher  truths  of  religion; 
that  not  every  helper  to  the  study  of  the  Bible  by  children 
and  youth  has  to  be  a  trained  exegete,  able  to  read  the 
Old  Testament  and  the  New  in  the  original  tongues,  and 
qualified  to  expound  the  Scriptures  in  their  deepest  mys- 
teries. On  the  contrary,  it  is  even  true,  whether  generally 
known  to  be  so  or  not,  that  a  profound  scholar  in  the 
realm  of  Bible  knowledge  is  not  likely  to  be — even  if  it 
wQro.  possible  for  him  to  be — so  sympathetic  and  helpful  a 
teacher  of  very  young  children,  as  a  teacher  to  whom  the 
primary  truths  of  the  Bible  are  as  yet  the  chief  treasures 
of  his  religious  attainment.  It  is  much  in  this  sphere  of 
study  as  in  any  other.  It  would  hardly  be  thought  either 
necessary  or  desirable  to  take  an  enthusiast  in  the  history 
of  English  literature  to  teach  a  child  his  alphabet,  or  to 
set  a  great  mathematician  at  helping  a  child  learn  his 
multiplication-table.  A  brother  or  sister,  or  a  fellow- 
pupil,  who  had  more  recently  mastered  these  elements 
of  knowledge,  would  have  a  sense  of  the  difficulties  to  be 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       21/ 

met  in  their  attaining,  and  a  consciousness  of  the  impor- 
tance of  their  teaching,  which  the  more  learned  teacher 
could  hardly  possess,  as  he  turned  away  from  his  more 
advanced  studies  for  such  a  simple  service.  The  element 
of  sympathy  with  a  young  learner  in  his  lack  and  in  his 
struggle,  is  an  element  of  power  in  a  teacher  in  any 
branch  of  knowledge;  and  in  no  branch  of  knowledge  is 
this  element  of  power  more  obviously  important  than  in 
that  of  Bible-study.  Peculiarly  is  it  true  that,  in  making 
clear  the  simplest  facts  of  the  gospel  scheme,  one  to 
whom  those  facts  have  just  been  made  clear  has  a  decided 
advantage  as  a  teacher. 

It  comes  to  pass,  therefore,  not  only  that  there  is  no 
need  to  have  trained  theologians  as  the  exclusive  teachers 
of  classes  in  the  Sunday-school,  but  that  such  persons,  if 
they  were  available,  would  not  be  likely  to  prove  as 
competent  and  efficient  teachers  of  the  primary  classes  in 
the  Sunday-school,  as  younger  Christians  to  whom  the 
elementary  truths  of  the  Bible  are  in  a  sense  newer  and 
so  more  immediately  impressive.  It  is  a  peculiarity  and  a 
crowning  glory  of  the  gospel  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ — 
a  peculiarity  and  a  glory  also  that  are  constantly  being 
forgotten  by  the  proclaimers  of  that  gospel — that  it  is 
suited  to  and  is  best  comprehended  by  the  mind  of  a 
child;  and  that  he  who  is  the  greater  as  a  teacher  of  the 
truths  of  that  gospel  is  he  who  is  nearest  to  the  child  in 
his  personal  spirit  and  in  his  apprehension  of  the  truths 
he  is  set  to  teach.  It  is  easier,  in  fact,  for  a  young  per- 
son, than  for  one  of  maturer  years,  to  be  as  a  child,  in  the 
imparting  to  a  child  of  those  great  fundamental  truths  of 
the  Bible  which  are  easiest  received  and  best  understood 
in  childhood. 


2l8  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

Rarely  has  the  truth  of  a  child's  capability  of  compre- 
hending, and  so  of  declaring,  the  great  cardinal  doctrines 
of  the  religion  of  the  Bible  been  more  eloquently  set  forth 
and  illustrated  than  in  an  utterance  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Charles  Wadsworth,  a  son  of  Connecticut,  which  would 
seem  worthy  of  quoting  just  here. 

"  We  .  .  .  maintain  that,  even  intellectually  received,  or 
as  forms  of  doctrine,  the  truths  necessary  to  salvation  are 
best  apprehended  in  childhood;  that  the  intellectual  opin- 
ions or  judgments  little  children  form  of  high  theological 
mysteries  are  nearer  to  the  realities,  and  so  truer,  than  the 
metaphysical  elaborations  of  the  ambitious  rabbis  of  the- 
ology. For  example,  I  come  to  one  of  these  men  of  aca- 
demic erudition,  and  I  ask,  'What is  God?'  and  he  answers 
'God  is  a  self-existent,  independent,  absolute,  infinite 
Spirit;  without  emotions,  for  emotion  implies  succession; 
without  dwelling-place,  for  pure  spirit  has  no  relations  to 
position ;  without,  indeed,  any  resemblances  or  analogies 
by  which  we  can  figure  or  conceive  of  him.'  Now  this 
may  be  all  very  profound  and  philosophic,  but  alas!  not 
very  comforting.  God  is  what?  An  absolute  and  in- 
finite Spirit!  Ah  me!  that  mysterious  and  awful  word 
Spirit/  No  marvel  that  the  disciples  on  Tiberias  were 
troubled,  as  through  the  wild  night  came  a  wondrous 
form  walking  on  the  billows,  and  they  thought  it  was 
'a  spirit/  And  so,  when  I  look  forth  on  the  immensities 
of  the  universe,  struggling  to  behold  the  invisible  and  to 
compass  the  incomprehensible,  and,  catching  glimpses  as 
it  were  of  an  absolute  and  infinite  Spirit,  am  told  that  it 
is  God,  then  I  startle  and  stand  back  in  the  wild  night, 
as  the  mighty  seas  roar  around  me,  as  from  the  forth- 
going   of  some  awful    and  incomprehensible  Phantom. 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       219 

But,  sick  of  this  vain  searching  to  find  out  God  unto  per- 
fection, I  turn  from  the  school  of  the  rabbi,  and  find  me 
a  Httle  child,  happy  and  trustful  in  its  unambitious  and 
earnest  instincts.  And  I  say  again,  *  WJiat  is  God?'  And 
the  child  answers,  'God  is  my  heavenly  Father.'  And  I 
know  better  now;  for  I  know  as  much  as  I  can  know 
now,     God  the  Spirit  is  my  Father  in  heaven."^ 

And  grand  Dr.  Bushnell  gives  added  emphasis  to  this 
great  truth,  when  he  rebukes  the  prevailing  assumption 
that  children  are  not  capable  of  knowing  God  in  child- 
hood. "  The  true  knowledge  of  God,  as  in  friendship," 
it  is  assumed,  he  says,  "  is  possible  to  adults,  but  not  to 
children;  whereas  the  real  fact  is,  that  children  are  a 
great  deal  more  capable  of  it.  The  boy  child,  Samuel, 
could  hear  the  call  when  old  Eli  could  not.  .  .  .  Ah!  my 
friends,  'of  these,  of  such  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven:'  so 
Christ  says,  and  we  make  almost  nothing  of  it.  These 
children  can  make  room  for  more  gospel  than  we,  and 
take  in  all  most  precious  thoughts  of  God  more  easily. 
The  very  highest  and  most  spiritual  things  are  a  great 
deal  closer  to  them  than  to  us.  Let  us  not  wonder,  and 
not  be  offended,  if  they  break  out  in  hosannas  on  just 
looking  in  the  face  of  Jesus,  when  the  great  multitude  of 
priests  and  apostles  are  dumb,  along  the  road,  as  the  ass 
on  which  he  rides."  ^ 

He  who  in  child-mindedness  has  freely  received  the 
truths  which  are  designed  for  children,  is  measurably 
qualified  to  impart  those  truths  to  others  of  like  capacity 
and  of  greater  need.  This  it  is  which  is  the  method  of 
true  gospel  teaching  in  all  the  centuries.     It  is  Andrew 

'  Sermon  on  Early  Religious  Culture,  p.  9  f. 
2  Sermon  on  God's  Thoughts  Fit  Dread,  for  Children,  p.  24  f. 


2 20  THE  SUNDA  V-  SCHO  OL : 

finding  the  Christ,  and  then  finding  his  own  brother  and 
bringing  him  to  Jesus.^  It  is  Philip  bringing  Nathanael, 
without  waiting  for  his  own  added  growth  in  knowledge.^ 
It  is  the  Samaritan  woman  hurrying  fi-om  the  well  to  the 
village  to  repeat  her  first  lesson  fi^om  the  Messiah  to  her 
fi"iends  and  neighbors.^  It  is  Priscilla  and  Aquila,  who 
had  learned  one  more  lesson  in  truth  than  Apollos,  taking 
him  and  instructing  him  accordingly.*  It  is  the  young 
men  and  women  set  as  teachers  of  Bible  truth  in  the 
catechetical  school  at  Alexandria.^  It  is  the  Waldenses 
keeping  up  the  standard  of  gospel  knowledge  in  the  cen- 
turies of  moral  darkness,  by  seeing  to  it,  according  to  the 
testimony  of  their  enemies,  that  "  he  who  has  been  a  dis- 
ciple for  seven  days  looks  out  some  one  whom  he  may 
teach  in  his  turn,  so  that  there  is  a  continual  increase"  of 
them.^  It  is  the  revived  activity  of  the  lay  membership  of 
the  church,  preaching  and  teaching  in  the  modern  Sunday- 
school,  in  accordance  with,  and  in  improvement  upon, 
the  best  methods  of  the  early  Christian  Church;^  and 
conformably  to  the  injunction  of  our  Lord  to  his  disciples : 
"What  I  tell  you  in  the  darkness,  speak  ye  in  the  light: 
and  what  ye  hear  in  the  ear,  proclaim  upon  the  house- 
tops."^ It  is,  in  short,  the  idea  of  John  Wesley  concern- 
ing the  work  of  the  membership  of  the  church  in  the 
winning  and  training  of  souls,  "At  work,  all  at  work, 
always  at  work." 

A  very  frequent  criticism  of  the  Sunday-school  as  it 
now  exists — a  criticism  that  is  indeed  often  made  to 

1  John  1 :  40-42.  *  John  1 :  45,  46,  *  John  4:  28-30. 

*  Acts  18  :  24-26.  5  See  p.  61,  ante.  ^  See  p.  66,  ante. 

'Acts  5  142;    8:4;    Heb.  8  :  10,  II.  8  Matt.  10  :  27. 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.      221 

appear  as  a  main  objection  to  the  Sunday-school — is  that 
a  large  proportion  of  its  teachers  are  young  persons; 
young  men  and  women,  without  well-stored  minds  and  a 
ripe  experience  in  the  Christian  life.  And  it  is  probably 
true  that  a  great  many  sensible  persons  are  of  the  opinion 
that  if  the  teachers  in  the  Sunday-school  were  all  of  them 
men  and  women  of  mature  years  and  of  developed  char- 
acters, full  of  knowledge  as  well  as  of  love,  the  Sunday- 
school  itself  would  be  incomparably  the  gainer  thereby. 
Yet,  as  a  practical  matter,  if  this  change  could  be  brought 
about,  it  would  hardly  fail  to  work  to  the  serious  injury 
of  the  Sunday-school,  and  to  the  loss  and  detriment  of 
the  scholars.  Other  things  being  equal,  a  godly  young 
layman  is  preferable  to  a  young  clergyman,  or  to  an  older 
one,  as  a  teacher  of  the  average  class  of  boys  or  girls  in 
the  Sunday-school;  and  a  young  girl  of  a  right  spirit  can 
have  a  power  over  many  a  class  of  girls  a  little  younger 
than  herself,  which  a  mother  in  Israel  does  not  possess. 
If  ministers  and  matrons  were  available  for  all  the  Sun- 
day-school classes  in  America,  it  would  be  unwise  to 
exchange  for  them  the  entire  body  of  enthusiastic,  ear- 
nest, and  loving  young  believers,  of  both  sexes,  who  are 
now  doing  God  service  in  that  field  of  effort. 

It  is  not  that  there  is  no  place  for  ministers  and 
matrons,  for  men  and  women  who  are  full  of  years  and 
of  knowledge,  as  teachers  in  the  Sunday-school, — for 
there  is  a  place  and  a  work  for  them  all  in  that  service; 
but  it  is  that  they  can  never  hope  to  fill  the  place  and  do 
the  work  as  Sunday-school  teachers,  of  the  best  of  the 
young  men  and  women  who  are  now  speaking  words  of 
loving  counsel  and  entreaty,  or  are  pointing  the  fittest 
truths  of  the  Bible  story  to  their  younger  fellows  in  Sun- 


222  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

day-school  membership.  This  truth  is  one  which  was 
found  difficult  of  acceptance  on  the  original  introduction 
of  the  modern  Sunday-school  into  Scotland  and  into 
America;  and  it  is  something  of  a  stumbling-block  to 
the  Christians  on  the  continent  of  Europe,  who  now  are 
asked,  in  connection  with  the  Sunday-school  movement, 
to  bring  into  the  active  teaching  force  of  the  church 
young  men  and  women  hitherto  deemed  in  place  only  as 
passive  listeners  to  pastoral  instructions.  Yet  it  is  on 
this  very  truth  that  the  Sunday-school  agency  is  estab- 
lished, and  on  which  it  must  rest.  And  it  is  in  recognition 
of  this  truth — a  truth  that  is  involved  in  the  very  idea  of 
the  Incarnation — that  intelligent  workers  in  the  field  of 
college  evangelism  find  a  gain  to  the  cause  in  sending 
on  an  inter-collegiate  mission  under-graduate  Christian 
athletes  in  preference  to  learned  and  godly  college  pro- 
fessors. And  so  it  is  that  it  ought  never  to  be  forgotten, 
that  among  the  best  available  teachers  in  the  Sunday- 
school  arc  young  persons,  of  both  sexes,  who  are  not 
very  far  removed  in  years,  in  tastes,  or  in  attainments, 
from  those  over  whom,  or  alongside  of  whom,  they  are 
set,  in  the  Lord. 

Persons  of  different  ages  and  of  different  degrees  of 
knowledge  and  experience  are  desirable,  as  teachers,  for 
different  classes  and  grades  of  scholars  in  the  Sunday- 
school;  and  this  without  the  possibility  of  an  unvarying 
assiernment  of  certain  sorts  of  teachers  to  certain  sorts  of 
scholars.  A  motherly  body,  for  example,  often  has 
peculiar  power  at  the  head  of  the  infant-class  or  primary 
department ;  yet  one  of  the  most  winsome  and  efficient 
infant-class  teachers  I  ever  knew  was  a  bachelor.  A 
great  deal  depends  on  the  native  characteristics  and  the 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       223 

peculiar  personal  experiences  of  the  teacher  in  such  a 
case.  There  is  more  of  true  motherlincss  of  heart  in 
some  bachelors  than  in  some  mothers;  and  children  arc- 
quick  to  recognize  this  fact.  In  almost  every  case,  how- 
ever, there  is  a  gain  in  having  young  helpers  of  the 
primary  department  set  to  reach  the  scholars  of  that 
department  individually. 

Ordinarily,  young  men  do  best  as  teachers  of  boys,  and 
young  women  as  teachers  of  girls.  Yet  in  some  cases  a 
refined  young  lady  can  control  a  class  of  ruder  boys,  by 
an  unconscious  appeal  to  their  native  gallantry,  when  a 
man  could  do  little  as  their  teacher;  and,  on  the  other 
hand,  a  class  of  frivolous  girls  will  be  awed  into  a  respect- 
ful attitude  before  a  gentleman  teacher,  as  they  would 
not  before  a  teacher  of  their  own  sex.  Yet,  again,  there 
are  women  who  could  never  teach  girls  as  well  as  they 
can  teach  boys;  and  other  women  who  can  teach  only 
girls  successfully.  Meanwhile,  men  and  women  of  edu- 
cation and  character  and  experience  can  do  a  work  in 
the  leading  of  adults  in  Bible-study,  or  in  counseling  and 
guiding  adults  in  their  personal  lives,  which  could  not 
be  done  by  a  younger  teacher.  In  short,  there  is  a  need 
in  the  Sunday-school  of  teachers  of  various  ages  and 
grades  of  attainment;  but,  withal,  the  larger  part  of  the 
work  of  teaching  young  children  and  youth — including 
the  work  both  of  instruction  and  of  influence — must  be 
done,  if  it  is  well  done,  by  young  Christian  teachers. 

No  person,  however,  w^hether  younger  or  older,  or  of 
whichever  sex,  can  be  a  true  teacher  in  the  Sunday-school 
without  knowing  what  to  teach,  be  it  much  or  little,  and 
how  to  teach  it.  And  this  necessity  of  knowledge  so  far 
on  the  teacher's  part,   carries   with   it  a  corresponding 


224  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

responsibility,  on  the  part  of  the  church,  to  secure  that 
measure  of  fitness  of  the  teacher  to  be  a  teaching  repre- 
sentative of  the  church  in  the  church  Bible-school.  Even  if 
a  bright  young  person  be  not  expected,  as  among  the  Wal- 
denses  of  olden  time,  to  be  fitted  by  merely  "  seven  days  " 
of  Christian  instruction  for  the  duty  of  communicating 
some  religious  truth  to  one  less  informed  than  himself,^ 
he  might  reasonably  be  expected — especially  if  he  be  of 
more  than  average  capacity — to  learn  enough  in  seven 
years  of  wise  church  teaching  to  qualify  him  for  a  share 
in  bringing  others  up  to  his  measure  of  attainment  in 
Bible  knowledge.  Hence  every  well-filled  church  which 
has  been  prosecuting  its  work  of  discipling  and  training 
the  members  of  its  charge,  by  its  own  chosen  methods, 
for  a  generation  or  more,  ought  to  have  a  fair  proportion 
of  its  entire  membership  already  fully  competent  to  de- 
clare the  great  truths  of  the  gospel  of  Christ  to  the  young 
and  the  ignorant,  and  to  aid  beginners  in  Bible-study  in 
their  earliest  truth -seeking.  If  there  is  a  lack  at  this 
point,  the  church  is  manifestly  to  blame  for  it,  either 
because  of  a  neglect  of  right  effort  at  instruction,  or  be- 
cause of  a  mistake  in  the  methods  of  instruction  employed. 
And  it  need  hardly  be  added  that  it  is  the  latter  cause, 
rather  than  the  former,  to  which  the  lack  in  almost  every 
case  should  be  ascribed. 

A  still  favorite  idea  in  the  church  is,  that  it  is  what  is 
sometimes  called  the  "teaching  pulpit"  which  should  be 
relied  on  as  a  chief  means  of  instructing  the  membership 
of  the  church  in  religious  truth;  and  where  that  agency 
is  clearly  at  its  best  without  satisfactory  results, — in  the 

*  See  page  66,  ante. 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR   TRAINING.       225 

growth  of  the  young  church-members  in  Bible  knowledge, 
— the  ministerial  habit  is  to  ascribe  the  failure  to  the  poor 
material  worked  on,  rather  than  to  the  poor  method  made 
use  of^  It  is  a  v^ery  common  thing — I  speak  out  of  my 
personal  experience  and  observation,  when  I  say  it  is  a 
very  common  thing — for  a  good  pastor  to  say  in  sub- 
stance :  "  My  difficulty  with  the  Sunday-school  is,  that 
the  teachers  in  it  are  so  incompetent.  Here  and  there,  in 
my  Sunday-school,  for  example,  there  is  a  well-informed 
Bible-teacher;  but  the  most  of  them  are  wretchedly  in- 
competent. Some  of  them  seem  actually  ignorant  of  the 
very  first  principles  of  religious  truth.  And  I  am  afraid 
it  is  so  elsewhere,  very  generally." 

^  To  rely  on  pulpit  preaching  as  a  primary  means  of  religious  instruction,  is  to 
act  counter  to  God's  plan  and  to  the  lessons  of  all  human  experience.  Persons 
who  have  had  the  benefit  of  the  best  pulpit  preaching  possible,  under  the  best 
conditions  imaginable,  without  the  preceding  or  the  accompanying  help  of  in- 
terlocutory teaching,  must  inevitably  be  lacking  in  the  knowledge  of  the  truths 
presented  by  the  preacher.  Many  a  good  preacher  has  given  emphasis  to  this 
truth  in  his  teachings  (see  pages  89-93,  ante).  Thomas  Doolittel,  a  friend 
of  Richard  Baxter,  writing  on  this  subject  in  1700,  said:  "Alas!  how  many 
hear  practical  sermons  as  riddles  which  they  cannot  understand,  because  they 
were  never  taught  catechetical  doctrines  and  terms  in  a  familiar  way,  adapted 
to  their  weak  capacities.  The  one  ought  to  be  done,  but  the  other  should 
not  be  left  undone.  Why  then  doth  the  one  abound  from  day  to  day,  and 
the  other  (tho'  an  ordinance  of  God)  in  too  many  places  is  not  to  be  found 
any  day?  It  is  undeniable  that  a  plain,  familiar  way  of  interloqutory  (which 
is  proper)  catechizing,  is  a  more  speedy  and  easie  way  to  cure  the  ignorance 
of  people  than  preaching  or  common-placing  upon  an  answer  in  the  catechism 
by  a  set  continued  speech  (however  profitable  to  the  knowing)  caa  pretend 
to  be.  For  a  catechist,  without  vain  boasting,  (as  experience  proves,)  might 
say  that  he  (rightly  managmg  this  work)  can  help  ignorant  persons  to  more 
knowledge  in  ten  months,  than  multitudes  that  never  learn'd  the  first  princi- 
ples, by  following  of  sermons  have  obtained  in  ten  [or]  in  forty  years.  If  so, 
and  we  be  dying,  and  people  dying,  and  our  and  their  lives  be  short,  why  do 
we  take  the  longest  and  not  the  shortest  way?  and  that  which  is  more  diffi- 
cult before  that  which  must  be  confessed  to  such  people  to  be  the  more 
easie?  "    {A  Plain  Method  of  Catechizing,  p.  2  f.)    Sure  enough,  why  do  we? 

'5 


226  THE  SUN  DA  Y-  SCHO  OL  : 

It  does  not  seem  to  occur  to  such  a  man  that  he  is 
practically  passing  condemnation  on  his  method  of  work, 
if  not  on  himself  as  a  worker,  in  his  endeavor  to  fulfill 
his  Lord's  injunction  to  teach — not  to  try  to  teach,  but  to 
teach — all  the  great  truths  of  the  gospel  to  the  young 
disciples  of  his  charge.  He  fails  to  realize  that  he  is  in 
fact  confessing :  "  The  poor  creatures  whose  only  religious 
instruction  is  my  sermonizing  are  wretchedly  ignorant. 
After  they  have  sat  under  my  preaching  for,  say,  ten  or 
twenty  years,  they  seem  to  know  next  to  nothing  about 
the  Bible  and  its  teachings.  And  I  am  afraid  that  it  is 
much  the  same  with  all  those  everywhere  who  depend 
on  pulpit  discourses  for  religious  instruction."  Granted 
that  the  minister  himself  in  such  a  case  is  honest  and 
earnest  and  competent  in  his  sphere,  and  correct  as  to  the 
results  of  his  effort,  and  it  remains  that  his  method  of 
work  is  proved  eminently  unsatisfactory.  If  the  principal 
of  a  preparatory  school  were  to  admit  that  not  one  pupil 
in  fifty  who  passed  a  series  of  years  under  his  instruction 
had  any  considerable  measure  of  knowledge  to  show  for 
his  schooling,  a  sensible  parent  would  naturally  conclude 
that  either  a  different  teacher  or  a  different  method  of 
teaching  was  a  necessity  in  that  school.  Similarly  it  is 
fair  to  conclude,  from  the  lack  of  Bible  knowledge  on  the 
part  of  those  who  depend  on  the  "teaching  pulpit"  for 
their  instruction,  that  the  methods  of  the  "teaching  pulpit" 
(since  the  vioi  in  the  pulpit  are  above  fair  question)  are  by 
no  means  sufficient  for  the  teaching  and  training  of  those 
who  ought  to  be  teachers  in  the  church  Bible-school. 

Those  who  are  to  teach  by  the  teaching  process  must 
be  taught  by  the  teaching  process ;  taught  what  to  teach 
and  how  to  teach  it,  by  the  interlocutory  method   of 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       22/ 

teaching, — the  only  method  of  elementary  teaching  which 
is  worthy  of  the  name  of  teaching.  Every  church  ought 
to  have,  what  many  a  church  does  have,  a  normal  class, 
or  training  class,  of  intending  teachers;  a  class  in  which 
those  who  are  candidates  for  the  teaching  office,  or  who 
are  likely  to  become  such,  are  under  instruction,  in  both 
the  matter  and  methods  of  Bible  teaching.  The  studies 
of  this  class  should  include  the  origin,  nature,  structure, 
scope,  and  general  contents  of  the  Bible;  the  main  features 
of  Bible  chronology,  Bible  geography,  and  Oriental  man- 
ners and  customs;  the  methods  of  using,  of  studying,  and 
of  teaching  the  Bible;  and  whatever  else  may  be  fairly 
within  the  range  of  the  Sunday-school  teacher's  mission 
and  labors.  Its  exercises  should  include  the  handling  of 
the  Bible  as  a  book  of  study  and  of  reference;  the  exhibit 
of  approved  methods  of  explaining  and  applying  Bible 
truth;  and  a  measure  of  practice  in  various  lines  of  wise 
teaching. 

Such  a  training  class  may  be  held  on  a  week-day 
evening  especially  devoted  to  it;  or  at  the  close  of,  or 
just  before,  the  regular  mid-week  meeting  of  the  church; 
or  yet,  again,  in  a  room  by  itself  at  the  hour  of  the  regular 
Sunday-school  session.  In  the  latter  case,  the  illustrative 
study  and  teaching  of  the  Bible  in  the  exercises  of  this 
class  may  properly  be  in  the  line  of  the  lesson  of  the  day 
in  the  Sunday-school  curriculum.  When  such  a  class  is 
recognized  as  a  necessity,  the  time  and  place  for  its  hold- 
ing will  easily  be  decided  on — and  secured.  And  such 
a  class,  in  one  form  or  another,  is  a  necessity  in  the  field 
of  every  local  church. 

A  class  of  this  kind  must  be  taught;  not  lectured  to 
or  harangued,  but  taught ;  and  in  order  to  its  teaching  it 


228  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

must  be  under  a  teacher, — one  who  realizes  the  difference 
between  lecturing  or  haranguing  and  teaching,  and  who 
will  be  content  with  nothing  short  of  teaching,  in  his 
endeavors  with  his  class.  The  very  idea  of  a  class  of 
this  sort  is  the  securing  of  effective  teaching  to  those  who 
have  not  gained  needful  instruction  through  pulpit  ser- 
monizing on  Sundays,  and  conference  room  desk  lecturing 
on  week-days.  Hence  the  method  here  must  be  radically 
different  from  the  methods  there.  Most  pastors  would 
be  amazed  to  know  how  ignorant  are  many  of  their 
hearers  concerning  the  very  truths  which  the  pastors 
take  for  granted  in  their  simpler  ordinary  pulpit  dis- 
courses,^    He  who  is  a  true  teacher  of  a  class  of  intending 


1  Thomas  Doolittel,  before  cited  (in  his  Plain  Method  of  Catechizing,^^. 
106-109),  gives  many  illustrations  of  the  ignorance  of  persons  who,  in  his  day, 
had  been  preached  to,  but  not  taught.  Thus  he  says  :  "  Now  you  are  a  dying, 
whether  are  you  going?  a  question  I  did  propose,  lately,  to  one  of  about 
seventy  years  of  age,  upon  that  which  proved  the  man's  death-bed.  The 
answer  was.  To  heaven,  sir,  I  hope.  I  asked,  By  whom  must  you,  a  sinner, 
get  to  heaven  ?  [He]  said,  By  my  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  I  enquired.  Who 
is  Christ?  This  person  did  not  know.  What  hath  Christ  done  or  suffered 
to  save  sinners?  [He]  could  to  this  make  no  answer.  I  enquired.  Was 
Christ  God  or  man  ?  [He]  could  not  tell.  I  asked.  What  offices  Christ  had? 
Tht  person  was  an  utter  stranger  to  all  this.  I  found  all  that  was  known  of 
Christ  by  this  person  was  Christ's  name,  and  nothing  else.  Lord,  my  bowels 
did  yearn,  my  soul  was  astonished.  I  stood  amazed  to  see  one  so  near  to 
dying,  and  so  confident  of  heaven,  and  yet  so  ignorant  of  Jesus  Christ.  Lord, 
thought  I,  can  a  sinner  be  saved  without  a  Saviour,  by  an  unknown  Christ! 
Can  a  soul  go  blind  to  heaven!  What  pity,  oh  what  pity  was  it,  that  this 
person  was  not  catechized  before  death  drew  so  nigh,  and  then  had  not  time 
to  learn ;  for  death  soon  separated  the  soul  from  the  body,  and  the  body  is 
now  in  the  grave  and  the  soul  is  gone  into  the  other  world." 

Nor  is  the  state  of  things  so  different  now  from  the  days  of  Baxter  and 
Doolittel.  A  New  England  clergyman  told  me  of  his  conversion  to  a  hearty 
interest  in  the  Sunday-school  through  finding  the  ignorance  of  gospel  truth 
in  the  mind  of  one  of  the  attentive  hearers  of  his  preaching  for  a  series  of 
years,  when  he  conversed  with  her  on  her  death-bed.     "  To  my  amazement," 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       229 

teachers  will,  however,  make  it  his  business  to  ascertain 
the  ignorance  as  well  as  the  intelligence  of  his  every 
pupil  at  any  point  which  is  for  the  time  being  under  con- 
sideration ;  and  he  will  never  take  it  for  granted  that  he 
has  taught  any  one  thing  to  a  pupil  of  his  charge  until  he 
has  proof  that  his  pupil  now  knows  that  thing.  It  may 
be  that  the  best  available  teacher  for  the  training  class  is 


he  said,  "  I  found  her  hardly  less  ignorant  of  the  great  fundamental  truths  of 
the  gospel  than  if  she  had  been  brought  up  in  a  heathen  land.  I  tell  you, 
that  as  I  stood  by  her  bedside,  trying  to  make  plain  to  her,  in  that  late  hour 
of  her  probation,  those  simple  truths  which  I  had  repeated  to  her  from  the 
pulpit  over  and  over  again,  and  which  I  had  supposed  she  knew  all  about,  I 
had  a  new  sense  of  the  fact  that  to  say  a  thing  explicitly  and  repeatedly  is  not 
necessarily  to  make  that  thing  the  possession  of  those  who  hear  it  "  (see  the 
Lecturer's  Teaching  and  Teachers,^.  11  f.).  In  other  words,  that  preacher  had^ 
found  that  preaching  is  not  teaching. 

Dr.  Steel  (in  his  Christian  Teacher  in  Sunday-schools,  p.  120  f.)  cites  the 
testimony  of  an  intelligent  missionary  worker  in  London  as  to  the  ignorance 
of  fundamental  truth  on  the  part  of  those  who  have  been  preached  to,  but  not 
taught.  A  young  assistant  of  this  missionary  was  telling  to  a  sick  man  the 
truths  of  the  gospel,  without  any  thought  that  the  hearer  was  ignorant  of  the 
meaning  of  the  terms  employed  in  the  discourse.  "  The  poor  man  listened 
with  every  appearance  of  attention,  and  when  my  young  friend  said,  '  You 
know,'  or  any  other  interrogative,  he  replied,  'Certainly,  sir,"  or  '  In  course, 
sir."  My  companion  appeared  pleased  with  the  man's  attention  to  instruc- 
tion, and  I  thought  it  time  to  undeceive  him.     '  Mr. ,'  said  I,  '  my  friend 

has  been  taking  much  pains  to  instruct  you,  and  now  I  will  ask  you  a  few 
questions.  Do  you  know  who  Jesus  Christ  was? '  '  Well,  no,"  said  he,  after 
a  pause,  '  I  should  say  that's  werry  hard  to  tell."  '  Do  you  know  whether  he 
was  St.  John's  brother?'  'No,  that  I  don't."  'Can  you  tell  me  who  the 
Trinity  are?'  'No,  sir.'  'Are  youasinner?"  'Oh,  certainly,  sir,  we  are 
all  sinners.'  A  pause.  'Have  you  ever  done  wrong?'  'Why,  no;  I  don't 
consider  as  ever  I  have.'  '  Did  you  ever  commit  sin?'  'Why,  no;  I  don't 
know  as  ever  I  did.'  '  But  do  you  think  you're  a  sinner?  '  '  Oh,  certainly, 
sir,  we're  all  sinners.'  'What  is  a  sinner?'  'Well  I'm  blest  if  I  know 
rightly  ;  I  never  had  no  head-piece ! '  "  There  are  njore  men  of  that  measure 
of  religious  intelligence  in  the  much-preached-to  and  still  untaught  hearers  in 
the  average  American,  as  well  as  in  the  English,  congregation  to-day,  than 
most  persons  suppose. 


230  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

a  clergyman,  and  it  may  be  that  he  is  a  layman;  but  in 
either  case  his  effectiveness  at  the  head  of  that  class  must 
depend,  not  on  his  being  a  minister  nor  yet  on  his  being 
a  layman,  but  on  his  being  a  teacher  and  on  his  doing 
the  work  of  a  teacher. 

In  addition  to  the  normal  class  or  training  class  for 
intending  teachers,  and  as  a  step  beyond  it  in  the  line  of 
teacher  training,  a  Bible-class  in  the  regular  Sunday- 
school,  taught  by  a  teacher  who  is  a  teacher,  and  not  a 
lecturer,  may  be  a  means  of  fitting  young  persons  for  the 
work  of  Sunday-school  teaching,  by  its  illustration  of  wise 
methods  of  Sunday-school  teaching.  In  such  a  class  the 
lesson  is  taught  not  merely  as  a  specimen  exercise,  but  in 
all  seriousness  and  from  a  sincere  desire  to  learn  the  truths 
of  the  lesson,  while  a  member  of  the  class,  in  bearing  an 
active  part  in  its  exercises,  is  learning  how  the  lesson 
should  be  taught,  as  well  as  what  the  lesson  teaches; 
and  thus  the  Bible-class  becomes,  in  a  sense,  a  practice 
class  for  intending  teachers.  One  who  is  in  such  a  class 
can  be  occasionally  called  on,  for  a  single  Sunday,  as  a 
substitute  teacher  over  a  younger  class,  and  so  be  prac- 
ticed and  tested.  In  some  instances,  a  Bible-class  of  this 
character  pursues  the  ordinary  curriculum  of  the  Sun- 
day-school of  which  it  is  a  part,  but  takes  its  lesson  a 
week  in  advance  of  the  rest  of  the  school.  In  other 
words,  its  lesson  for  to-day  is  the  lesson  which  the  other 
classes  will  have  next  Sunday.  This  is  in  order  to  fit 
the  members  of  the  Bible-class  to  teach  to-day's  lesson 
next  Sunday  with  some  preparation,  in  case  they  are 
called  on  for  substitute  service  accordingly.  And  so,  in 
one  way  or  in  another,  the  training  of  scholars  in  the 
Sunday-school  for  the  work  of  Sunday-school  teaching 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       23 1 

can  be  going  on,  and  should  be  going  on,  coincidently 
with  the  ordinary  work  of  the  Sunday-school  as  the  Bible 
teaching  agency  of  the  church. 

But  whatever  be  done  by  way  of  training  intending 
teachers  for  the  station  and  duties  of  a  Sunday-school 
teacher,  by  means  of  a  normal  class  or  of  a  practice  class, 
the  work  of  training  and  teaching  in  and  for  their  service 
as  teachers  those  who  already  are  teachers  in  the  Sun- 
day-school, must  bq  done  in  and  by  means  of  a  weekly 
teachers'- meeting  as  a  preparation  class  for  each  next 
following  Sunday's  lesson.  Indeed,  without  a  weekly 
meeting  of  teachers  as  a  preparation  class,  a  Sunday- 
school  is  hardly  deserving  of  the  name  of  Sunday-school, 
It  certainly  cannot  do  properly  the  work  of  a  Sunday- 
school  in  the  Sunday-school  sphere.  This  truth  needs 
to  be  recognized  as  of  invariable  application. 

As  was  pointed  out  at  the  opening  of  this  discussion 
of  the  Sunday-school  theme,'  the  true  Sunday-school  idea 
includes  the  grouping  of  children  and  the  child-like  into 
separate  classes  under  particular  teachers  for  specific 
Bible-study;  and  the  combining  of  these  classes,  or 
separate  groups,  into  a  school-whole  for  common  influ- 
ences and  mutual  co-work.  Without  the  grouping  into 
separate  classes  there  is  no  opportunity  of  reaching  the 
pupils  individually.  Without  the  combining  of  the  sepa- 
rate groups  into  a  school-whole  there  is  no  opportunity 
of  securing  a  unity  of  impression  on  the  entire  assembly. 
There  must  be  both  class-work  and  school-work;  class- 
instruction  and  school -instruction;  class-influence  and 
school-influence.     To  make  sure  of  all  this  the  teachers 

*  Lecture  I.,  p.  3. 


232  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

must  be  brought  together,  and  together  helped  to  a  unity 
of  plan,  of  purpose,  of  spirit,  and  of  endeavor,  in  their 
separate  class-work  and  in  their  combined  school-work. 

If  the  teachers  of  the  Sunday-school  are  not  thus 
gathered,  to  compare  the  results  of  their  separate  study, 
and  to  help  each  other  by  an  interchange  of  thoughts  and 
opinions,  they  are  not  likely  to  be  in  agreement  in  their 
understanding,  and  so  in  their  teaching,  of  the  lesson 
before  them.  Nor  is  there  any  prospect,  without  this 
agency,  of  bringing  up  the  poorer  teachers  to  the  standard 
of  the  best  qualified,  and  of  giving  to  every  teacher  the 
benefit  of  the  best  thought  and  the  most  careful  prepara- 
tion of  all  the  teachers,  in  the  study  of  a  given  lesson. 
Moreover,  it  is  only  by  some  such  means  as  this  that  he 
who  leads  and  oversees  the  school  as  a  whole  can  measure 
and  impress  and  train  his  teachers  as  teachers,  both  indi- 
vidually and  collectively,  and  can  sift  out  those  who  can- 
not be  trained  by  him.  With  the  best  superintendent  in 
the  world,  a  Sunday-school  without  a  weekly  teachers'- 
meeting  is  rather  an  aggregation  of  schools  than  a  unified 
school;  each  class  being  in  a  sense  a  school  by  itself, 
without  special  benefit  from  or  special  sympathy  with 
the  labors  and  attainments,  the  experiences  and  needs, 
of  other  classes  in  the  same  room.  There  is  in  that 
assemblage  no  one  school  current  of  thought  and  feel- 
ing, no  one  school  standard  of  teaching;  nor  has  the 
superintendent  a  possibility  of  securing  this.  Unless, 
therefore,  a  Sunday-school  has  a  weekly  teachers'- meet- 
ing, it  lacks  an  essential  feature  of  the  true  Sunday-school ; 
and  its  teachers  can  neither  be  at  their  best,  nor  do  their 
best,  as  Sunday-school  teachers  in  connection  with  that 
Sunday-school. 


ITS  7'JiAaiERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       233 

The  time  and  place  of  holding  the  weekly  teachers'- 
meeting  will  necessarily  be  different  in  different  com- 
munities; yet  there  are  advantages  in  having  its  sessions 
late  in  the  week,  in  order  that  all  who  come  to  it  can 
bring  the  results  of  their  lesson-study,  and  can  go  from 
it  to  their  classes  with  its  promptings  and  impressions 
fresh  in  their  minds.  To  have  it,  according  to  the  prac- 
tice in  some  places,  as  a  supplemental  exercise  at  the  close 
of  the  regular  session  of  the  Sunday-school,  with  a  view 
to  a  brief  survey  of  the  next  Sunday's  lesson;  or  as 
following  the  mid-week  church  prayer-meeting;  or  as  a 
preliminary  exercise  just  before  the  Sunday-school  ses- 
sion, or  before  the  morning  church  service, — is  certainly 
better  than  not  to  have  it  at  all;  but  it  is  obvious  that  a 
still  better  way,  the  proper  way  indeed,  is  to  take  an 
evening  for  it,  or  an  afternoon  if,  as  in  some  country 
communities,  the  afternoon  rather  than  the  evening  be 
preferred  for  such  a  gathering.  If  there  is  a  comfortable 
church  parlor,  or  a  teachers'- meeting  room  at  the  church, 
that  is  a  good  place  for  it.  But  in  most  communities  a 
private  house  is  more  attractive.  Ordinarily  it  is  better 
to  have  the  meeting  continuously  at  one  house,  in  order 
that  all  may  know  where  to  find  it,  even  after  a  temporary 
absence;  but  in  widely  scattered  communities  a  change 
from  house  to  house,  in  order  to  equalize  the  tr-avel  for 
all,  is  sometimes  deemed  important. 

There  is  no  one  method  of  conduct  which  is  best  for 
all  teachcrs'-meetings.  But,  as  already  suggested,  there 
is  one  method  of  conduct  which  is  never  best  for  a 
teachers'-meeting,  and  that  is  for  the  leader  to  lecture 
the  teachers;  to  give  them  an  address  on  the  lesson 
before  them;  to  tell  them,  in  continuous  discourse,  what 


234  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

he  thinks,  or  what  he  knows,  or  what  he  thinks  he  knows, 
about  the  lesson.  Lecturing  the  teachers  is  very  well  in 
its  time  and  place,  as  preaching  to  them  is  in  its  time 
and  place;  but  neither  lecturing  nor  preaching  is,  in  any 
degree  or  in  any  sense,  a  substitute,  on  the  one  hand,  for 
a  mutual  examination  of  the  lesson  by  the  teachers  under 
a  skilled  leader;  or,  on  the  other  hand,  for  a  careful  test- 
ing and  training,  by  a  skilled  leader,  of  those  teachers 
for  the  work  of  teaching  that  lesson. 

The  leader  of  the  teachers'-meeting  ought  to  find  out 
what  the  teachers  already  know,  or  think,  or  think  they 
know,  about  the  lesson  before  them;  also  the  points  and 
measure  of  their  chiefest  ignorance  in  the  line  of  their 
needs  for  the  teaching  of  that  lesson.  In  neither  direction 
will  a  leader  be  helped  in  the  slightest  degree  by  a  lecture 
from  himself  The  teachers,  on  the  other  hand,  ought 
to  be  made  to  realize  where  their  own  knowledge  con- 
cerning the  lesson  is  imperfect  or  is  at  fault,  and  they 
ought  to  be  helped  to  an  accurate  knowledge  and  to  a 
correct  understanding  of  the  lesson  and  its  teachings.  A 
lecture  from  the  leader  would  be  likely  to  fail  in  giving 
just  the  information  and  aid  most  needed  by  the  most 
needy  teachers;  and  the  better  the  lecture  the  greater  its 
liability  to  fail  just  here;  for  rarely  would  a  lecturer 
think  it  necessary  to  state  those  elemental  facts,  or  make 
those  simpler  explanations,  in  his  lecture,  which  a  ques- 
tioning of  the  teachers  would  indicate  to  be  all-essential 
to  the  right  informing  of  some  one  of  them. 

Four  things  concerning  the  lesson  under  examination 
are  to  be  looked  at  in  the  conduct  of  every  teachers'- 
meeting;  namely,  the  text,  the  teachings,  the  applica- 
tions, and  the  methods  of  using. 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       235 

The  text  includes  all  of  the  context  which  is  necessary 
to  make  the  text  clear  as  it  stands.  Its  examination 
covers  the  meaning  of  the  very  words  of  Scripture  here 
employed.  That  examination  will  frequently  disclose 
some  startling  misconception,  by  a  relatively  intelligent 
teacher,  of  the  meaning  of  a  familiar  word;  while  it  will 
enable  the  competent  leader  to  supply  the  results  of  his 
fullest  knowledge  of  the  text  to  those  who  are  in  want  of 
it  to  a  degree  before  unsuspected  by  him. 

The  teachings  cover  the  truths  taught  by  the  words  as 
they  stand,  extending  to  the  central  truth  of  the  passage, 
and  to  its  subordinate  or  incidental  truths.  An  examina- 
tion of  these  teachings,  by  and  with  the  teachers,  will 
enable  the  leader  to  know  the  bent  of  mind  and  character, 
and  the  doctrinal  strength  and  weakness,  of  his  teachers 
severally,  as  would  otherwise  be  impossible  to  him.  And 
ten  wise  words  from  the  leader  at  the  right  time  in  the 
course  of  such  an  examination,  would  be  likely  to  effect 
more  for  the  correction  of  a  teacher's  error,  or  for  the 
supply  of  a  teacher's  lack,  than  ten  lectures  delivered  by 
him  without  his  knowledge  of  the  teacher's  particular 
need  now  disclosed  to  him. 

The  applications  are  the  practical  bearings  of  the  lesson 
truths  on  character  and  life  and  duty.  Here  it  is,  pecul- 
iarly, that  there  is  a  gain  in  bringing  out  the  views  of  dif- 
ferent teachers,  rather  than  attempting  to  give  to  all  the 
views  of  one.  No  teacher  or  leader  is  so  bright  that  his 
mind  would  see  all  the  applications  of  a  lesson  truth 
which  might  be  brought  out  by  ten  or  twenty  bright 
teachers  of  different  modes  of  life  and  thought.  Any 
correction  or  improvement  of  these  for  which  the  leader 
is  competent,  is  timely  just  here. 


236  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

The  methods  of  using  the  lesson  and  its  teachings  are 
the  ways  by  which  the  teachers  are  to  present  and  apply 
and  illustrate  those  teachings  to  their  scholars.  This 
covers  the  whole  range  of  the  teaching  process  as  appli- 
cable to  all  grades  and  kinds  of  scholars.  Valuable  hints 
and  suggestions  in  this  line  are  likely  to  be  brought  out  by 
different  teachers,  as  a  result  of  their  skill  and  experience 
in  teaching ;  and  if  the  leader  be  a  better  teacher  than  any 
of  those  whom  he  leads,  he  can  make  his  superiority  a 
benefit  to  all  by  his  supplemental  hints  and  suggestions. 

The  aim  and  purpose  of  the  teachers'-meeting  should 
be,  in  fact,  to  prepare  the  teachers  for  the  immediate 
teaching  of  the  lesson  before  them.  The  meeting  is 
not  for  the  teachers'  first  study  of  the  lesson,  but  for  a 
comparison  and  correction  of  the  results  of  such  study. 
All  its  methods  should,  therefore,  be  directed  to  the  test- 
ing and  training  of  the  individual  teachers,  under  the 
oversight  and  guidance  of  a  skilled  leader — be  he  pastor, 
or  superintendent,  or  duly  qualified  teacher. 

The  feasibility  of  a  teachers'-meeting  in  any  commu- 
nity pivots  on  a  recognition  of  its  necessity.  In  a  city  or 
town  or  village,  there  is  no  practical  barrier  to  such  a 
gathering  in  the  remoteness  of  the  teachers  from  one 
another  and  from  the  school  centre.  If  the  teachers  in 
such  a  place  feel  that  they  cannot  properly  be  ready  to 
teach  on  Sunday  without  attending  a  teachers'-meeting 
before  Sunday,  and  if  the  superintendent  agrees  with 
them  at  this  point,  a  teachers'-meeting  will  be  kept  up 
there  as  a  matter  of  course.  In  any  country  community, 
also,  where  the  people  find  a  way  of  getting  to  church  on 
Sundays,  or  to  a  voting-place  on  an  election  day,  or  to  a 
funeral  when  a  prominent  person  is  to  be  buried,  or  to 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       237 

a  circus,  or  other  "great  moral  show"  on  its  occasional 
appearance,  the  difficulty  of  gathering  the  teachers  at  a 
teachers'- meeting  will  be  recognized  as  surmountable,  as 
soon  as  all  see  that  a  teachers'- meeting  must  be  had. 

In  illustration  of  what  is  practicable  in  the  line  of  a 
teachers'- meeting  in  the  country,  a  Sunday-school  in  a 
New  England  community  can  be  pointed  to,  where,  while 
its  seventeen  teachers  are  scattered  over  a  field  of  from 
three  to  five  miles'  sweep,  a  teachers'- meeting  has  been 
maintained  by  it  for  nearly  twenty  years.  As  to  the 
method  of  getting  together  those  of  its  lady  teachers  who 
are  dependent  on  others  for  means  of  conveyance,  or 
for  an  escort,  the  superintendent  of  this  Sunday-school 
reports :  "  Our  pastor  has  a  team,  and  he  takes  all  who  will 
accompany  him  from  his  section.  The  superintendent, 
living  a  mile  and  a  half  distant  from  his  pastor,  is  always 
glad  to  take  a  full  load  from  his  neighborhood;  he  having 
had  a  large  spring-wagon  fitted  up  for  the  purpose,  which 
will  accommodate  nine.  A  lantern  is  carried  by  him  in 
dark  nights,  as  he  goes  from  house  to  house  to  get  the 
party  together.  Teachers  who  have  teams  call  at  various 
residences  along  the  route;  and  thus  they  are  gathered."^ 
What  has  been  done  in  that  New  England  community 
might  be  done  in  many  another.  At  all  events,  in  some 
way  a  teachers'- meeting,  as  a  preparation  class  for  the 
teachers,  ought  to  be  secured,  every  week,  in  every  Sun- 
day-school. So  far  there  would  seem  to  be  no  room  for 
discussion. 

Of  course,  it  must  be  understood  that  no  training  of 
a  teacher  in  a  normal  class,  in  a  practice  class,  or  in  a 

1  See  The  Sunday  School  Times  for  February  6,  1886,  p.  82. 


238  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

preparation  class,  can  in  itself  secure  to  a  teacher  that 
discernment  of  spiritual  truth,  that  supreme  love  for 
Christ,  and  that  devoted  love  for  souls,  which  are  the 
chiefest  and  the  most  important  power  of  one  who  would 
open  and  apply  the  lessons  of  God's  Word  to  children  and 
to  the  child-like.^  But  he  who  leads  any  one  of  these 
training-classes  ought  himself  to  be  so  imbued  with  the 
spirit  of  Christ,  and  with  a  sense  of  the  beauty,  the  pre- 
ciousness,  and  the  sufficiency,  of  the  truths  of  the  gospel 
of  Christ,  that  his  words  and  ways  will  tend  to  impress 
upon  all  its  members  the  conviction  that  only  as  they  are 
taught  and  guided  by  the  Spirit  of  God  can  they  be  true 
teachers  of  the  Word  of  God,  or  faithful  guides  of  those 
whom  God  has  given  into  their  charge. 

Moreover,  outside  of  these  training-classes  for  teachers, 
whatever  is  calculated  to  emphasize  in  the  mind  of  a  Sun- 
day-school teacher  the  peculiar  importance  and  sacredness 
of  his  teaching-office,  and  the  special  responsibility  of  his 
position  as  a  representative  of  the  Church  of  Christ  in 
that  teaching-office,  has  its  obvious  value  in  the  proper 
training  of  the  Sunday-school  teacher,  and  in  the  holding 
him  to  a  high  standard  in  the  performance  of  his  duty  as 
a  teacher.  Hence  it  is  that  every  person  who  enters 
upon  the  office  of  a  Sunday-school  teacher  ought  to 
be  helped  to  realize  that  in  so  doing  he  assumes  an 
important  responsibility,  and  occupies  a  representative 

1  It  would  hardly  be  claimed,  however,  that  a  teacher  would  have  less  of 
spiritual-mindedness  through  having  a  larger  measure  of  intelligent  fitness  for 
the  teaching  work  of  a  teacher.  He  ought  to  be  able  to  hijluence  his  scholars 
by  his  personal  character,  while  he  instructs  them  by  means  of  his  knowledge 
of  the  truth  and  of  wise  methods  of  its  imparting  and  fixing.  There  is  no 
superior  sanctity  in  slovenliness,  and  a  teacher  might  have  all  the  more  zeal 
through  having  more  knowledge. 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING       239 

position,  in  the  realm  of  a  sacred  calling.  To  this  end,  a 
formal  covenanting  of  the  teacher  to  be  faithful  in  his 
new  sphere  and  duties  is  wisely  practiced  in  many  a 
Sunday-school ;  and,  again,  a  formal  installing  of  teach- 
ers, with  appropriate  religious  services,  is  a  custom  which 
grows  in  favor/ 

Sunday-school  teachers  should  be  selected  for  their 
important  work,  not  taken  at  hap-hazard,  nor  merely  as 
they  proffer  their  services,  but  selected  with  care  by  the 
church  or  its  duly  appointed  representative.  If,  indeed, 
it  be  said  that,  in  a  given  community,  there  is  a  lack  of 
teaching  material,  and  that  the  Sunday-school  must  take 
the  best  that  offers,  it  will  still  be  clear  that  even  there 
there  is  a  duty  of  selecting  "the  best  that  offers,"  rather 
than  the  worst.  Every  Sunday-school  must  have  some 
standard  of  fitness  for  its  teachers;  if,  indeed,  it  be  no 
higher  a  standard  than  that  of  a  good  moral  character 
and  of  an  intelligent  belief  in  the  divine  authority  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  The  standard  being  recognized,  the 
teachers  should  be  selected  accordingly. 

And,  be  it  remembered,  the  higher  the  standard  in 
such  a  matter  as  fitness  for  the  Sunday-school  teacher's 

1  Various  forms  of  installation  for  officers  and  teachers  in  the  Sunday-school 
have  been  arranged  and  published  from  time  to  time.  One  of  these  forms,  as 
prepared  for  and  as  used  in  the  Grace  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  Sunday- 
school  of  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  is  given  in  full  in  The  Sunday  School  Times 
for  April  28,  1877.  It  includes  an  order  of  worship,  with  appropriate  respon- 
sive readings  from  the  Bible  ;  a  series  of  questions  to  the  officers-elect  by  the 
pastor;  another  series  of  questions  to  the  teachers-elect ;  and  a  vow  of  con- 
secration to  be  repeated  aloud  by  all  the  installed  officers  and  teachers.  This 
subject  is  treated  by  Bishop  John  H.  Vincent  in  The  Modern  Sunday-school 
(p.  156  f.).  A  form  for  the  public  reception  of  Sunday-school  teachers,  in- 
cluding the  teachers'  covenant,  is  given  by  him  in  Appendix  A  of  that  work 
(p.  291  f.). 


240  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

office,  the  easier  it  will  be,  in  the  long  run,  to  secure 
persons  who  are  conformed,  or  who  desire  to  be  con- 
formed, to  that  standard.  It  is  a  principle  of  human 
nature  to  be  influenced  in  one's  estimate  of  the  value  of 
an  object  by  the  price  which  is  set  upon  it  by  its  holder. 
If  he  who  knows  it  best  deems  it  of  little  worth,  others 
less  acquainted  with  its  value  are  not  likely  to  think  more 
of  it  than  he  does.  The  higher  he  holds  it,  the  more 
worth  it  is  liable  to  have  in  their  sight.  This  principle 
shows  itself  in  spheres  of  mental  and  spiritual  attainment, 
as  well  as  in  the  sphere  of  material  objects  of  possession. 
A  business  establishment  which  is  more  select  than  its 
rivals  in  the  choice  of  workers  in  its  several  departments 
has  more  good  seekers  for  position  there,  because  of  the 
very  stimulus  and  incentive  thus  given  to  competing  ap- 
plicants. To  raise  the  standard  of  admission  to  a  public 
school,  to  an  academy,  to  a  college,  or  to  a  university, 
tends  to  increase  the  number  of  those  who  intelligently 
strive  to  be  fitted  for  entrance  there.^     The  position  of 

'  Frequent  illustrations  of  this  principle  have  been  furnished  in  the  man- 
agement of  mission-schools  in  our  American  cities.  So  long  as  the  doors 
were  open  to  all  indiscriminate  comers  and  goers,  the  attendance  at  such  a 
school  would  be  irregular,  and  the  estimate  put  upon  its  advantages  would 
be  comparatively  a  low  one.  But  no  sooner  were  fair  qualifications  for  admis- 
sion required  at  its  doors  than  the  estimate  of  its  advantages  began  to  rise  in 
its  vicinity,  and  the  attendance  on  its  exercises  began  to  improve  in  regularity 
as  well  as  in  quality. 

Some  years  ago  an  experiment  in  this  line  was  made  in  connection  with  the 
Sunday-school  of  Olivet  Chapel,  New  York,  an  undenominational  mission,  of 
which  the  Rev.  Dr.  A.  F.  Schauffler  was  pastor  and  superintendent,  and  Mr. 
Franklin  Allen  was  general  secretary.  To  guard  against  the  evils  of  an  indefi- 
nite membership  of  roving  scholars,  a  stricter  classification  of  those  in  regular 
attendance  at  the  school  was  undertaken,  and  greater  care  was  exercised  in 
the  admission  of  new  members.  All  applicants  for  admission  to  the  primary, 
or  to  the  intermediate,  department,  were  assigned  to  a  reception-room,  where 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       241 

teacher  in  any  institution  of  learning  is  likely  to  be 
sought  after,  by  competent  candidates,  in  proportion  to 
the  acquirements  which  are  understood  to  be  the  posses- 
sion of  him  to  whom  it  will  be  awarded.  And  this 
prevailing  principle  has  its  application  in  the  sphere  of 
the  Sunday-school  teacher's  work,  as  elsewhere. 

To  say  that  any  person  is  fitted  to  be  a  Sunday-school 
teacher  is  to  deprive  the  Sunday-school  teacher's  position 

they  were  to  await  a  vacancy  in  classes  for  which  they  might  be  fitted.  On 
their  admission  to  this  reception-room,  the  name,  the  address,  and  the  date  of 
entry  of  each  person  were  taken  ;  and  to  each  was  given  a  certificate  of  con- 
nection with  this  scholars'  preparatory  class,  including  a  specification  of  cer- 
tain duties  of  a  scholar  in  the  Sunday-school.  Regular  attendance  at  this 
preparatory  class — under  provisional  instruction — until  the  time  of  a  transfer 
to  a  permanent  class,  was  made  a  condition  of  such  transfer.  Meanwhile  the 
homes  of  these  intending-scholars,  or  candidate-scholars,  were  visited  by  the 
missionary  visitor  of  the  school,  in  order  to  the  obtaining  of  such  facts  as 
would  promote  an  intelligent  judgment  as  to  the  wise  assignment  of  the  chil- 
dren to  the  regular  classes.  Moreover,  even  after  full  admission  to  a  regular 
class,  a  scholar  was  liable  to  be  dropped  from  the  rolls  if  he  were  absent  four 
consecutive  Sundays  without  a  satisfactory  i^ritten  excuse. 

The  working  of  this  plan  abundantly  justified  its  wisdom.  Children  of  the 
neighborhood  became  desirous  of  finding  a  place  in  a  school  so  carefully 
guarded  as  this,  and  parents  had  a  new  interest  in  the  admission  of  their  chil- 
dren to  such  an  institution.  Soon  the  reception-room  was  overflowing  with 
patient  waiters;  and  then  another  step  was  taken  in  an  upward  direction,  by 
the  announcement  that  only  when  a  vacancy  occurred  in  the  reception-room 
could  a  child  come  in  there.  This  induced  competition  in  well-doing  outside 
of  the  school,  as  a  means  to  securing  the  first  vacancy  in  the  reception-room. 
And  by  thus  raising  the  standard  of  admission  to  that  Sunday-school,  a  larger 
average  of  earnest  and  well-disposed  scholars  was  secured  in  its  attendance 
throughout  the  year.  Thus,  in  1875,  the  year  before  this  plan  was  introduced, 
the  average  weekly  attendance  at  the  school  was  514,  that  number  being 
forty-five  per  cent,  of  the  total  number  on  the  rolls.  In  1878,  when  the  plan 
had  been  working  for  three  years,  the  average  weekly  attendance  was  574, 
which  was  more  than  seventy-eight  per  cent  of  the  total  membership.  And 
this  is  but  a  single  item  in  the  many  proofs  of  the  substantial  gain  to  that 
school  membership  through  raising  its  standards  of  admission.  (For  details 
of  this  plan,  see  Olivet  Chapel  Year  Book  for  1877,  for  1878,  and  for  1879.) 

j6 


242  THE  SUNDAY- SCHOOL : 

of  that  honor  and  dignity  and  sacredness,  and  even  of 
that  identity,  which  would  make  it  a  place  worthy  of  a 
true  and  devoted  Christian's  reverent  striving  after.  To 
define  the  special  qualifications  for  thai  position,  which 
must  be  insisted  on  as  its  prerequisite,  and  to  indicate 
the  special  duties  which  are  inseparable  from  its  occu- 
pancy, at  once  lift  it  before  the  mind  of  an  earnest  and 
an  intelligent  Christian  worker  as  a  sphere  to  be  sought 
and  to  be  filled,  understandingly.  One  of  the  commonest 
difficulties,  indeed,  in  the  securing  of  competent  and 
faithful  Sunday-school  teachers  is  the  lack  of  a  clear 
knowledge,  on  the  part  both  of  him  who  seeks  such 
teachers  and  of  those  who  are  sought  as  such  teachers, 
of  the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  the  position  in  ques- 
tion. Hence,  to  mark  out  the  scope  and  limits  of  the 
competent  and  worthy  Sunday-school  teacher's  sphere  is 
to  present  that  sphere  more  distinctly  as  an  object  of 
consideration  before  those  who  are  invited  to  enter  it; 
and  to  uj^lift  a  high  standard  of  attainment  and  of  per- 
formance as  the  ideal  in  that  sphere  is  to  arouse  a  new 
conception  of  its  importance,  and  of  its  desirableness,  in 
the  mind  of  those  before  whom  it  is  held  as  a  field  of 
good  service  for  Christ,  with  the  opportunities,  the  enjoy- 
ments, and  the  rewards  of  such  service.  If,  therefore,  the 
Church  of  Christ  would  have  capable  and  faithful  teachers 
in  its  Sunday-school,  let  the  Church  of  Christ  know  and 
show  what  is  the  standard  of  capable  and  faithful  Sun- 
day-school teaching. 

It  may,  it  is  true,  be  necessary,  in  a  particular  school, 
to  make  use  of  temporary  substitutes,  or  candidates, 
for  the  office  of  teacher;  but  even  that  should  be  done 
with  carefulness  and  deliberation,  and  with  the  explicit 


ITS  TEACHERS  AND  THEIR  TRAINING.       243 

understanding,  by  the  temporary  incumbent  of  the  teach- 
er's position,  that  he  holds  it  but  tentatively.  Until  one 
is  fully  conformed  in  his  qualifications  and  attainments 
to  the  recognized  standard  of  the  teaching-office  in  his 
Sunday-school,  he  ought  not  to  be  counted  a  full  teacher 
there.  And  when  the  time  comes  for  one  to  enter  for- 
mally upon  the  office  of  Sunday-school  teacher,  it  is  right 
and  fitting — as  before  suggested — that  he  sign  a  cove- 
nant obligation  to  be  faithful  in  the  specific  duties  of  his 
important  and  responsible  sphere. 

The  Sunday-school  teacher  being  a  representative  of 
the  church,  and  the  church  being  responsible  for  its  rep- 
resentatives in  the  Sunday-school  teaching-office,  it  is 
important  that  the  recognition  of  this  representative  and 
responsible  position  of  the  Sunday-school  teacher  be 
made  manifest  on  the  part  of  both  the  church  and  the 
Sunday-school  teacher.  It  is  quite  proper  that  the 
superintendent  of  the  Sunday-school,  as  the  duly  em- 
powered representative  of  the  church,  should  select  and 
appoint  new  teachers;  but  the  approval  of  the  church 
dught  to  be  deemed  essential  to  the  confirming  of  new 
teachers  in  their  office.  And  it  is  in  view  of  this  fact 
that  the  suggested  mode  of  publicly  installing  new 
teachers,  and  of  their  covenanting  for  their  duties,  has  an 
added  value. 

In  short,  we  see  that  there  is  a  need,  a  great  and  grow- 
ing need,  of  good  teachers  for  the  church  Bible-school ; 
that  the  material  for  good  teachers  is  not  as  abundant  as 
it  might  be,  and  that  what  there  is  of  the  material  is  not 
as  satisfactory  as  could  be  desired.  And  we  see  also  that 
the  best  available  teaching  material  can  be  taken  as  it  is. 


244  THE  SLNDAY- SCHOOL. 

and  by  wise  methods  be  brought  to  what  it  ought  to  be. 
We  see  that  the  church  must  have  a  standard  for  its 
Sunday-school  teachers,  and  must  feel  a  responsibility 
for  bringing  its  teachers  up  to  that  standard.  We  see 
that  it  is  not  for  the  church  to  complain  of  the  lack  of 
good  teachers  in  its  Sunday-school,  as  though  the  blame 
rested  on  the  Sunday-school  or  on  the  teachers ;  but  that 
it  is  for  the  church  to  recognize  its  own  fault  in  permit- 
ting this  deficiency  to  continue  in  the  sphere  of  its  own 
responsibility  and  privilege,  and  to  take  steps  for  the 
meeting  and  supplying  of  this  deficiency. 


LECTURE   VII. 

THE   PASTOR  AND   THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 


VII. 
THE  PASTOR  AND  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 

Meaning  of  the  Term  "  Pastor." — The  True  Pastor's  Sphere  and 
Duties.  —  A  Pastor's  Responsibility  for  his  Sunday-school. — 
Gain  of  Setting  Others  at  Work.  —  Dr.  Stephen  H.  Tyng's 
Pastoral  Work  in  his  Sunday-school. —  A  Scene  in  Plymouth 
Church.  —  A  Specimen  Church-school  and  its  Pastor.  —  Dr. 
Constans  L.  Goodell  as  a  Sunday-school  Pastor. —  No  One 
Way  for  All  Pastors. —  Suggested  Ways  of  Working. — Making 
the  Closing  Impression  in  the  Desk. —  Recognizing  the  Place 
and  Work  of  Others. —  Getting  and  Giving  Due  Credit. 

In  speaking  of  the  pastor  and  the  Sunday-school,  I  use 
the  term  "pastor"  in  its  primitive  sense  of  "shepherd," 
or  overseer  and  guardian  of  a  specific  flock,  and  not  in 
its  more  Hmited  meaning  of  a  clergyman  visiting  from 
house  to  house  in  religious  conversation  with  the  people 
of  his  charge.  In  the  apostolic  days,  while  the  local 
church  was  a  less  prominent  factor  than  afterwards  in  the 
community  of  which  it  formed  a  part,  the  Lord,  as  we 
are  told,  "gave  some  to  be  apostles  ;  and  some,  prophets; 
and  some,  evangelists;  and  some,  pastors  and  teachers; 
for  the  perfecting  of  the  saints,  unto  the  work  of  minister- 
ing, unto  the  building  up  of  the  body  of  Christ."^  But 
with  the  local  church  as  it  is  to-day,  not  merely  in  the 
Baptist  and  Congregational  polity,  but  in  every  branch  of 

1  Eph.  4  :  II,  12. 

247 


248  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

the  Church  of  Christ,  the  clergyman  in  charge  has,  within 
Hmits,  the  responsibihty  of  securing  to  his  people  the 
ministry  covered  by  the  idea  of  apostle,  and  of  prophet, 
and  of  evangelist,  and  of  pastor,  and  of  teacher;  and  all 
this  ministry  is  included  in  the  term  "pastor,"  or  "shep- 
herd," of  the  local  church  flock.  It  is  of  the  relation  of 
the  pastor,  in  this  sense  of  the  term  "  pastor,"  to  the 
Sunday-school  as  the  chief  teaching  agency  of  his  charge, 
that  I  am  to  speak  to  you  to-day. 

It  is  by  no  forced  figure  of  speech  that  a  clergyman 
as  the  head,  under  Christ,  of  a  local  church,  may  be 
likened  to  the  ^president  of  a  university;  his  Sunday- 
school  representing  the  undergraduate  department;  his 
pulpit  representing  the  agency  of  sermons  and  lectures 
and  addresses,  whereby  graduates  and  undergraduates 
are  told  of  their  duties,  are  guided  in  their  studies,  and 
are  inspired  to  their  labors;  his  pastoral  work,  in  its  more 
restricted  sense,  representing  his  personal  intercourse,  in 
all  its  possibilities  of  magnetic  influence,  with  those  under 
him  and  those  about  him;  his  evangelistic  labors  repre- 
senting- his  winsome  exhibit  of  all  that  which  he  lives  for, 
and  which  he  loves,  in  his  occasional  addresses  at  outside 
gatherings  of  those  whom  he  could  not  reach  v/ithin 
the  walls  of  the  institution  over  which  he  presides, — all 
these  lines  of  varied  and  important  work  being  given 
their  chiefest  power  by  that  administrative  ability  and 
that  weight  of  personal  character  which  enables  him  to 
be  over  them  all,  and  to  keep  them  severally  at  their 
highest  and  at  their  best.  Happy,  happy,  that  university 
which,  like  Yale,  has  a  president  signally  and  felicitously 
successful  ahke  in  each  and  all  these  various  departments 
of  university  work  and  of  university  influence  !     Let  such 


ITS  PASTOR.  249 

a  university  president  be  the  ideal  pattern  of  complete- 
ness of  service,  in  his  smaller  sphere,  before  the  mind  of 
every  pastor  of  a  local  church. 

By  virtue  of  his  office,  a  clergyman  as  pastor  in  charge 
of  a  local  church  and  congregation  is  responsible  for  the 
oversight  and  guidance  of  all  the  departments  of  formal 
religious  worship  and  of  representative  Christian  work  in 
his  church  and  congregation.  The  services  of  public 
worship  in  the  sanctuary,  the  proclamations  of  truth  from 
the  pulpit,  the  interlocutory  teaching  of  God's  Word  in 
the  Sunday-school,  the  exercises  of  social  prayer  and  of 
Christian  conference  in  the  mid-week  prayer-meeting, 
and  the  general  religious  activities  of  his  people  in  the 
direction  of  the  various  beneficent  associations  in  which, 
as  members  of  his  church-fold,  they  bear  a  representative 
part, — each  and  all  of  these  lines  of  action  and  of  influence 
come  within  the  scope  of  his  official  oversight  and  of  his 
personal  responsibility.  The  Sunday-school  of  his  church 
is,  therefore,  his  Sunday-school  in  the  same  sense  that  the 
pulpit  of  his  church  is  his  pulpit.  This  being  so,  it  follows 
that  if  a  pastor  is  what  he  ought  to  be — or  what  he  needs 
to  be — in  knowledge,  in  ability,  in  spirit,  and  in  pur- 
pose,— his  Sunday-school  will  be  what  it  ought  it  to  be, — 
in  plan,  in  scope,  in  organization,  and  in  methods  of 
working.  It  will  be  all  this  before  he  is  through  with  it, 
even  if  it  is  not  all  this  when  he  takes  hold  of  it. 

But  because  a  pastor  is  responsible  for  the  oversight 
and  guidance  of  his  Sunday-school,  it  is  not  to  be  under- 
stood that  he  has  all  the  work  of  the  Sunday-school  to 
do,  nor  even  that  its  main  details  are  to  be  immediately 
directed  by  him.  A  pastor  may  be  quite  as  wisely  and 
quite  as  fully  responsible  for  the  pulpit  of  his  church 


2  5  O  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

when  it  is  occupied  by  another  clergyman,  of  his  selec- 
tion, as  when  he  occupies  it  himself.  Many  a  pastor  even 
prefers  to  have  his  mid-week  prayer-meeting  led  by  lay 
members  of  his  church,  rather  than  by  their  pastor;  and 
this  without  the  thought  that  he  is  less  responsible  for 
its  wise  direction  in  the  one  case  than  in  the  other.  In 
most  cases  a  pastor  desires  that  the  service  of  song  in 
the  sanctuary,  for  the  character  and  scope  of  which  he 
recognizes  his  responsibility,  be  in  th&  immediate  charge 
of  a  skilled  musical  leader.  And  as  it  is  in  these  services 
of  preaching,  and  of  social  prayer,  and  of  sacred  song,  so 
it  is  in  the  Sunday-school  teaching  service, — the  pastor's 
responsibility  of  oversight  and  guidance  may  be,  and 
ordinarily  is,  best  met  and  discharged  through  the  wisely 
watched  and  the  wisely  aided  labors  of  a  skilled  superin- 
tendent, who  is  the  immediate  selecter  and  director  of 
the  teachers,  and  leader  of  the  Sunday-school  exercises. 

Under  the  old  Jewish  law,  the  religious  teacher  of  the 
children,  who  was  in  charge  of  the  synagogue  Bible- 
school,  was  not  the  chief  ruler  of  the  synagogue,  although 
he  was  subject  to  the  local  sanhedrin  of  which  that  ruler 
was  the  head.  The  early  catechumenical  schools  of  the 
Christian  Church  were  not  always  immediately  presided 
over  by  an  ordained  clergyman, — as  is  illustrated  by  the 
distinguished  case  of  Origen  at  Alexandria.  All  the  way 
down  the  centuries,  it  has  been  more  customary  for  a 
layman  than  for  a  clergyman  to  be  at  the  head  of  the 
church-school  teaching  service;  and  if,  indeed,  a  pastor 
superintends  his  own  Sunday-school,  he  does  so  by 
taking  the  place,  for  the  time  being,  of  a  subordinate 
official  of  the  church,  in  addition  to  the  performance  of 
his  duties  as  the  chief  official  of  the  local  church  and  con- 


ITS  PASTOR.  251 

grcgation.  Thus  for  lack  of  a  competent  man  to  serve  as 
superintendent,  or  to  be  put  in  training  for  that  position, 
a  pastor  may  deem  it  best  to  superintend  his  Sunday- 
school;  as,  under  similar  circumstances,  he  might  feel  it 
his  duty  to  lead  his  church  choir,  or  to  act  as  church 
organist.  But  in  such  a  case  it  behooves  the  pastor  to 
beai*in  mind  that  his  church  is  not  so  well  furnished, 
while  it  has  a  pastor  who  is  a  good  superintendent,  as  it 
would  be  if  it  had  a  pastor  and 2l  good  superintendent; 
for  in  this  field  of  Christian  work,  as  in  every  other,  "  it 
is  better  to  set  ten  men  at  work  than  it  is  to  do  the  work 
often  men."^ 

Those  illustrations,  which  abound,  of  good  pastors  who 
have  superintended  their  own  Sunday-schools  with  rare 
efficiency  and  with  excellent  results,  simply  go  to  show 
the  worth  and  importance  of  wise  Sunday-school  super- 
intendence— by  whomsoever  performed.  They  do  not 
tend  to  prove  that  it  is  better  for  a  pastor  to  be  without 
the  help  of  a  trained  superintendent  of  his  Sunday-school. 
On  the  contrary,  they  suggest  the  desirableness  of  a  good 
superintendent  for  every  church  Sunday-school,  in  addi- 
tion to  the  best  pastor  possible.  These  illustrations  are, 
in  fact,  marks  of  progress  toward  a  better  state  of  things ; 
and,  as  such,  some  of  them  are  well  worth  noting  by 
those  who  would  learn  what  a  pastor  himself  could  do 
for  his  Sunday-school,  and  what  he  ought  to  see  to  it 
that  some  one  else  does  do  for  his  Sunday-school. 

1  The  Rev.  Dr.  William  M.  Taylor  says  on  this  point:  "  In  my  opinion 
that  minister  is  the  best  organizer  who  follows  the  advice  given  by  a  wise  old 
pastor  to  a  young  brother  in  the  ministry, — 'Young  man,  never  do  yourself 
what  you. can  get  another  to  do  for  you  as  well.'  "  Even  if  the  work  could 
be  better  done  by  one's  self  than  by  another,  it  would  be  well  to  set  the  poorer 
worker  at  learning  how  to  do  it,  by  doing  it  as  well  as  he  can. 


252  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

Dr.  Stephen  H.  Tyng,  Senior,  is  perhaps  as  good  an 
illustration  as  could  be  named  of  an  American  pastor 
who,  as  a  rule,  preferred  to  superintend  his  own  Sunday- 
school,  and  who  continued  to  do  so  with  rare  ability  and 
effectiveness  for  a  series  of  years.  His  first  pastorate 
was  begun,  in  1829,  over  St.  Paul's  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  Philadelphia;  a  church  in  which  Sunday- 
schools,  in  a  somewhat  primitive  form,  had  been  con- 
ducted since  18 16.  To  those  schools,  as  reorganized  by 
himself,  Dr.  Tyng  devoted  much  time  and  attention,  and 
with  gratifying  results.  But  it  was  when  he  was  called  to 
have  charge  of  the  Church  of  the  Epiphany,  in  the  same 
city,  at  the  time  of  its  founding,  in  1834,  that  Dr.  Tyng 
was  first  enabled  to  give  to  the  Sunday-school  the  place 
to  which  he  deemed  it  entitled  in  the  plans  of  the  church, 
and  in  the  affections  of  the  pastor.  "  That  church,"  he 
says,  "was  founded  upon  the  Sunday-school.  Its  energy 
and  strength  were  given  to  the  [Sunday-]  school.  Previ- 
ously, the  Sunday-school  had  been  [generally]  considered 
an  appendage  to  the  church,  and  by  some  ministers  and 
members  a  troublesome  appendage.  We  founded  this 
church  with  the  distinct  understanding  and  plan,  that  the 
Sunday-school  should  be  the  main  and  prominent  object 
of  regard,  and  its  convenience  and  successful  operation 
thoroughly  provided  for;  and  we  carried  out  this  prin- 
ciple completely."^ 

A  half-century's  history  of  the  church  thus  founded 
has  given  evidence  of  the  wisdom  of  its  primary  methods 
of  evangelism  and  of  Christian  training,  through  the 
divinely  appointed  church-school  agency.      During  the 

'  Dr.  Tyng's  Forty  Years'  Experience  in  Sunday-schools,  pp.  10-12. 


ITS  PASTOR.  253 

eleven  years  of  his  continuance  with  this  church,  Dr. 
Tyng  devoted  one  evening  in  the  week  to  the  instruction 
of  his  Sunday-school  teachers;  he  was  always  present  at 
the  morning  session  of  his  Sunday-school  (the  school 
having  two  sessions  every  Sunday);  he  taught  a  Bible- 
class  composed  of  women;  and  he  gave  a  monthly  address 
to  the  Sunday-school,  at  the  time  of  one  of  its  sessions. 
When  he  left  Philadelphia,  for  New  York,  in  1845,  this 
Sunday-school  had  nearly  thirty-folded  under  his  super- 
vision; and  in  looking  back  upon  his  Philadelphia  min- 
istry, he  could  say  that  no  part  of  it  seemed  to  him  "to 
have  been  so  remunerative  and  happy"  as  that  in  con- 
nection with  the  Sunday-schools  of  his  charge  there.  ^ 

In  St.  George's  Church,  New  York,  to  which  Dr.  Tyng 
was  called  from  Philadelphia,  the  Sunday-school  had 
been  prominent  under  the  Rev.  Dr.  Milnor.  But  when 
the  church  organization  was  removed  up -town,  from 
Beekman  Street,  soon  after  Dr.  Tyng's  assuming  its 
charge,  a  new  start  was  taken  with  it,  with  the  Sunday- 
school  as  its  basis  rather  than  as  an  appendage  to  it. 
"Our  new  enterprise,"  he  says,  "was  in  its  very  founda- 
tion and  purpose,  like  the  Epiphany,  a  Sunday-school 
church."  In  five  years  the  Sunday-school,  which  was 
begun  with  about  thirty  children,  had  increased  to  a 
membership  of  more  than  a  thousand.  A  mission-school 
was  started  by  it,  which  soon  numbered  about  five 
hundred.  The  aggregate  of  these  schools  continued 
much  the  same  for  years,  even  though  ten  other  Sunday- 
schools  were  meantime  gathered  by  other  churches  in 
the  neighborhood  of  these.     For  a  while.  Dr.  Tyng  had  a 

*  Dr.  Tyng's  Forty  Ycai's'  Experience  in  Sunday-schools,  p.  13  f. 


254  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

layman  as  the  superintendent  of  his  church  Sunday- 
school.  Later,  he  was  its  superintendent  as  well  as  its 
pastor. 

Thirteen  years  after  the  up-town  Sunday-school  of  St. 
George's  Church  was  organized,  Dr.  Tyng  .said,  of  his 
pastoral  connection  with  it :  "  From  the  commencement 
of  this  school,  I  have  never  failed  to  go  through  all  these 
rooms  and  classes  [weekly],  and  to  maintain  a  personal 
inspection  and  oversight  of  the  whole  operation  in  all  its 
branches  and  its  practical  details.  For  the  last  three 
years  I  have  given  my  whole  time  and  presence  to  their 
actual  personal  management,  during  the  whole  period  of 
the  session.  If  you  should  be  disposed  to  ask  why  I 
have  undertaken  this  additional  labor,  I  can  only  say, 
because  my  whole  experience  of  the  operation  has  so 
enlarged  my  sense  of  its  importance,  and  my  affectionate 
interest  therein,  that  I  have  felt  it  a  vast  pleasure  and 
enjoyment  to  be  myself  personally  and  constantly  en- 
gaged in  its  duties  and  its  success.  I  have  around  me 
valued  laymen  whom  I  should  be  glad  to  see  earnestly 
at  work,  and  very  faithful  teachers  who  are  constantly 
so.  But  thus  far,  neither  the  amount  of  actual  toil,  nor 
the  importance  of  keeping  the  lay  power  of  the  church 
engaged,  has  been  sufficient  to  overcome  my  own  selfish 
delight  in  the  occupation,  or  my  unwillingness  to  relin- 
quish it.  Perhaps  in  this  I  have  been  wrong.  But  I 
have  seen  some  very  blessed  and  valuable  results  arising 
from  the  labors  thus  pursued."^ 

I  am  not  citing  these  experiences  and  opinions  of  Dr. 
Tyng  as  illustrating  the  ideal  pastor  in  his  relation  to  the 

*  Dr.  '1  yng's  Forty  Years'  Experience  in  Siinday-schoi-ils,  jsp.  16-22. 


ITS  PylSTOR.  255 

Sunday-school  work;  but  I  refer  to  them  as  indicative  of 
an  estimate  of  the  Sunday-school  in  its  relation  to  church 
life  and  to  church  progress  which  was  the  basis  of  Dr. 
Tyng's  pastoral  work,  an  estimate  which  I  deem  justified 
by  Scripture,  by  experience,  and  by  reason.  Holding 
that  estimate  of  the  Sunday-school,  a  wise  pastor  could, 
with  things  as  they  now  are,  improve  on  Dr.  Tyng's 
method  of  pastoral  supervision  of  the  Sunday-school 
work,  by  securing  the  doing  of  that  work  by  trained  lay- 
men, where  Dr.  Tyng  preferred  to  do  it  all  himself.  But 
Dr.  Tyng  obviously  did  better  for  his  church  while  he 
was  its  pastor,  by  giving  such  prominence  to  his  Sunday- 
school,  even  though  he  failed  to  train  laymen  for  its  chief 
direction,  than  he  could  have  done  by  leaving  that  Sun- 
day-school without  the  personal  sympathy  and  oversight 
of  its  pastor,  whoever  might  have  superintended  it. 

As  I  stood  with  him,  on  one  occasion,  twenty  years  or 
so  ago,  looking  in  at  the  door  of  his  main  Sunday-school 
room  at  St.  George's,  Dr.  Tyng  said  to  me  with  honest 
pride,  as  his  eye  swept  over  all  the  classes  of  that  busy 
throng:  " Every  teacher  in  this  room  started  under  my 
eye  as  a  scholar  in  the  infant-class.  I  have  trained  them 
all,  myself;  and  I  know  them  all;  and  they  know  me. 
They  are  my  children  in  the  faith."  And  again  he  told 
me  that  he  knew  of  more  than  fifty  ministers  of  Christ 
who  had  been  under  his  oversight  as  scholars  in  that 
infant  class.  There  is  an  element  of  pastoral  power  in 
that  kind  of  Sunday-school  training  work,  which  eveiy 
pastor  would  do  well  to  make  available  in  his  field  by 
one  method  or  by  another.  That  is  the  truth  I  would 
emphasize  from  Dr.  Tyng's  experience  and  opinions. 
He  practically  covered  the  ground  of  his  philosophy  of 


256  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

pastoral  work  in  connection  with  the  Sunday-school, 
when  he  said  in  a  public  address,  on  one  occasion:  "For 
years,  if  the  choice  before  me  in  my  work  as  a  pastor, 
has  been  between  one  child  and  two  adults,  I  have  always 
been  ready  to  take  the  child." 

Indeed,  it  may  be  worth  while  just  here  to  give  more 
fully  the  circumstances  of  the  address  in  which  this 
remark  of  Dr.  Tyng's  was  made.  It  was  at  an  annual 
convention  of  the  Sunday-school  teachers  of  New  York 
State,  held  in  Brooklyn,  in  the  autumn  of  1858,  now 
nearly  thirty  years  ago.  The  closing  evening  of  the  con- 
vention was  given  to  a  public  meeting  in  Plymouth  Church, 
to  be  addressed  by  the  Rev.  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Stephen  H.  Tyng,  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Richard  S. 
Storrs.  The  house  was  packed  to  its  utmost  capacity. 
Dr.  Tyng  was  delayed  in  his  reaching  the  house,  so  that 
Mr.  Beecher  was  well  into  his  address  before  Dr.  Tyng 
took  a  seat  behind  him  as  a  listener.  Mr.  Beecher  said 
that  the  longer  he  lived  the  more  he  valued  those  ser- 
mons preached  where  one  man  was  the  minister  and  one 
man  was  the  congregation ;  where  the  preaching  was  face 
to  face  and  eye  to  eye,  with  a  "Thou  art  the  man!"  as  its 
unmistakable  application ;  and  it  v/as  the  opportunity  of 
such  preaching  as  this  that  gave  the  Sunday-school 
teacher  a  peculiar  power,  which  he,  as  a  pulpit  preacher 
to  a  large  congregation,  often  envied.  But  Mr.  Beecher 
went  on  to  say  that,  as  things  were,  his  work  was  in  the 
pulpit,  and  with  adults;  therefore  he  was  compelled  to 
leave  this  face-to-face  work  with  children  to  other  per- 
sons in  the  field  of  his  church  and  congregation.  All  of 
this  was  said  by  Mr.  Beecher  before  Dr.  Tyng  arrived. 
Then  Mr.  Beecher  proceeded  to  give  an  admirable  ex- 


ITS  PASTOR.  257 

hibit  of  the  Sunday-school  teacher's  spirit  and  work,  to 
which  Dr.  Tyng  Hstencd  with  interest. 

At  the  opening  of  his  immediately  following  address, 
Dr.  Tyng  referred,  in  his  stately  and  graceful  way,  to  the 
genius  and  eloquence  of  the  speaker  who  had  preceded 
him,  and  who,  as  he  expressed  it,  had,  in  his  remarks, 
not  only  touched  the  entire  circumference  of  the  even- 
ing's theme,  but  filled  the  whole  disk  within.  Then  he 
launched  out  upon  the  subject  for  himself,  telling  of  his 
uniform  preference  for  one  child  rather  than  for  two 
adults,  as  already  mentioned.  "  It  seems  to  me,"  said 
Dr.  Tyng,  "that  the  Devil  would  never  ask  anything  more 
of  a  minister  than  to  have  him  feel  that  his  mission  was 
chiefly  to  the  grown-up  members  of  his  congregation, 
while  some  one  else  was  to  look  after  the  children." 
The  patness  of  this  thrust,  at  the  admission  made  by  Mr. 
Beecher  before  Dr.  Tyng's  arrival,  was  palpable  to  the 
audience,  and  it  was  greeted  with  a  ripple  of  involuntary 
laughter.  Stimulated  by  this  responsiveness,  while  un- 
suspicious of  its  cause.  Dr.  Tyng  followed  up  his  hit  with 
his  wonted  vigor.  Pointing  down  to  the  main  entrance 
door  before  him,  of  the  Plymouth  Church  auditorium,  he 
hissed  out  his  satirical  sentences  with  that  peculiar  inten- 
sity of  his  :  "  I  can  see  the  Devil  looking  in  at  that  door, 
and  saying  to  the  minister  on  this  platform,  *  Now  you 
just  stand  there  and  fire  away  at  the  old  folks,  and  Til 
go  around  and  steal  away  the  little  ones — as  the  Indians 
steal  ducks,  swimming  under  them,  catching  them  by  the 
legs,  and  pulling  them  under.'  " 

Sitting  by  Mr.  Beecher's  side,  while  this  speech  was 
making,  I  saw  that  for  once  he  felt  that  the  laugh  was 
fairly  on  him,  in  his  own  church.      He  met  the  case 

17 


258  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

gracefully,  by  coming  forward,  at  the  close  of  Dr.  Tyng's 
address,  and  admitting  that  the  hit  was  a  fair  one.  "  I 
wondered,"  he  said,  "what  Dr.  Tyng  was  up  to,  when  he 
covered  me  all  over  with  'soft  soap,'  to  begin  with;  but 
I  found  out  before  he  was  through.  He  was  only  doing 
as  the  anaconda  does,  when  it  licks  its  victim  all  over, 
from  head  to  foot,  in  order  to  swallow  the  poor  creature 
down  at  a  single  gulp."  But  aside  from  any  question 
of  the  pertinency  of  those  remarks  of  Dr.  Tyng  to  Mr. 
Beecher  personally,  as  a  pastor,  they  certainly  cover  a 
truth  which  ought  not  to  be  overlooked  by  pastors 
generally. 

Another  illustration  of  a  Sunday-school  made  the 
centre  of  the  pastor's  church  work,  and  superintended  by 
the  pastor  himself  with  rare  success,  is  worthy  of  note  in 
this  connection.  The  pastor's  name  I  withhold  at  his 
own  request;  but  I  will  say  that,  before  he  was  a  pastor, 
he  had  that  training  as  a  school  teacher  which  Luther 
wished  for  every  pastor.  His  school  I  describe  as  I  saw 
it  some  years  ago;  for  I  understand  that  its  methods  have 
not  been  changed  materially  since  that  time. 

The  church  Sunday-school,  in  this  instance,  is  distinc- 
tively a  church  Sunday-school,  for  the  training  of  the 
children  and  of  the  child-like  in  the  church  and  congre- 
gation. Mission  work  among  the  young  in  the  com- 
munity about  this  Sunday-school  is  carried  on  by  itself; 
but  that  work  is  not  deemed  the  work  of  the  church 
Sunday-school.  Scholars  are  admitted  as  full  members 
of  this  Sunday-school  only  on  passing  a  required  ex- 
amination ;  and  they  retain  their  membership  only  by 
faithfulness  in  the  discharge  of  recognized  duties  in  the 
Sunday-school.     Although    the    denomination    of  this 


ITS  PASTOR.  259 

church  is  one  that  would  be  classed  as  non-liturgical,  the 
examination  prescribed  in  this  school  is  on  an  arranged 
liturgy,  or  series  of  recitative  exercises,  including  the  Ten 
Commandments,  the  Beatitudes,  the  Prodigal  Son,  the 
Judgment,  the  Apostles'  Creed,  the  Lord's  Prayer,  and 
other  kindred  selections;  all  of  which  must  be  accurately 
memorized,  ready  for  use  in  public  recitation  whenever 
called  for.  Until  new  scholars  are  proficient  in  these 
exercises,  and  have  shown  by  a  satisfactory  probation, 
for  a  specified  term,  that  they  are  willing  to  conform  to 
the  school  regulations,  they  are  counted  as  visitors,  re- 
ceiving attention  from  the  teachers,  but  not  being  sharers 
in  all  the  privileges  of  the  school. 

The  lessons  of  the  Sunday-school  are  arranged  by  the 
pastor,  according  to  his  own  preference,  in  the  line  of  a 
systematic  study  of  the  Scriptures.  With  each  Sunday's 
lesson,  brief  explanatory  or  illustrative  passages  of  Scrip- 
ture are  noted  for  reading  in  the  household.  A  hymn 
for  the  month  is  also  selected  by  the  pastor,  to  be  printed 
with  the  list  of  lessons  and  home -readings;  and  this 
hymn,  together  with  the  lesson-text,  must  be  memorized 
by  teachers  and  scholars  alike,  as  one  of  the  conditions 
of  continued  membership  in  the  Sunday-school.  The 
lesson-hymn  for  the  month  is,  by  the  way,  used  in  the 
weekly  prayer-meeting  of  the  church,  as  well  as  in  the 
Sunday-school  exercises;  for  the  Sunday-school  in  that 
church  is  vitally  connected  with  every  department  of 
church  work  and  church  worship. 

On  Friday  evening  of  each  week  the  pastor-superin- 
tendent meets  his  teachers,  to  lead  them  in  their  mutual 
preparation  for  their  Sunday  teaching  service.  Here  it 
is  that  his  peculiar  power  as  a  teacher,  and  as  a  teacher 


26o  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

of  teachers,  shows  itself  at  its  best.  It  is  no  lecture  on 
the  lesson  that  he  gives  them  in  this  teachers'- meeting. 
On  the  contrary,  he  finds  out  what  they  know,  and  what 
they  need  to  know,  individually,  in  the  line  of  their  teach- 
ing work.  Then  he  helps  them  to  learn,  and  he  shows 
them  how  to  teach.  He,  as  a  teacher,  trains  them  to  be 
teachers.  This  work  of  his  they  appreciate,  and  they 
avail  themselves  of  it  gratefully.  For  a  series  of  years 
the  average  attendance  at  this  meeting  has  been  con- 
siderably more  than  a  majority  of  the  entire  number  of 
teachers  in  the  Sunday-school. 

The  theme  of  the  day's  lesson,  which  has  been  the 
theme  of  the  week's  home  study,  is  often  made  the  theme 
of  the  pastor's  Sunday  morning  discourse,  following  the 
chief  service  of  worship  in  the  sanctuary.  Then,  after  an 
intermission,  the  Sunday-school  gathers  under  the  pas- 
tor's lead.  Selections  from  the  school  liturgy  are  recited 
by  teachers  and  scholars  in  unison,  at  the  pastor's  call — 
all  from  memory.  The  pastor's  prayer  is  repeated  after 
him  by  the  school,  sentence  by  sentence,  in  its  offering; 
and  it  is  followed  by  the  Lord's  Prayer,  in  concert.  At 
the  close  of  the  period  of  class  lesson-study,  a  call  is  made 
for  the  perfect  classes  to  rise.  "  Perfectness "  here  indi- 
cates conformity  to  a  specified  standard,  in  attendance, 
conduct,  recitation,  and  an  offering  to  the  Lord's  treasury. 
The  perfect  classes,  having  been  commended,  retire  from 
the  room,  leaving  the  imperfect  classes  there.  Individu- 
ally perfect  scholars,  out  of  imperfect  classes,  are  then 
asked  to  rise,  and  are  permitted  to  retire.  Finally,  the 
imperfect  scholars  are  conversed  with  individually  accord- 
ing to  their  several  needs,  and  then  dismissed, 

A  close  system  of  marking  is  kept  up  in  this  Sunday- 


ITS  PASTOR.  261 

school,  and  a  careful  record  of  the  results  is  disclosed  at 
the  end  of  each  year.  If  a  scholar  seems  needlessly 
imperfect,  without  a  spirit  of  reformation,  he  loses  the 
privileges  of  the  school  in  whole  or  in  part.  The  full 
term  of  a  school  course  in  this  Sunday-school  is  six 
years.  Its  close  receives  recognition,  and  the  due  reward 
of  scholars,  by  the  church.  As  the  Sunday-school  has 
recently  concluded  its  fourth  term  of  six  years,  with 
its  numbers  and  its  interest  well  sustained,  its  history 
furnishes  added  proof  of  the  truth  already  noted,  that 
under  good  leadership  a  Sunday-school  can  more  surely, 
if  not  more  easily,  be  held  to  a  high  standard  than  to 
a  lower  one. 

With  all  that  the  pastor,  in  this  instance,  does  for  his 
Sunday-school  by  his  personal  presence  and  labors,  he 
does  not  forget  to  set  and  train  others  at  work  in  various 
departments  of  its  management  and  conduct.  The  chief 
value  of  this  Sunday-school  as  an  illustration,  in  my  pres- 
ent reference  to  it,  is,  however,  as  showing  that  a  pastor 
can,  if  he  has  the  will  and  the  ability,  make  the  Sunday- 
school  the  central  agency  for  the  church  training  of  the 
children  and  youth  of  his  charge,  and  for  the  improve- 
ment and  unifying  of  household  religious  instruction  and 
influence  in  their  behalf 

If,  in  such  a  lecture  as  this,  I  were  merely  to  tell  of 
what  a  pastor  ought  to  do,  or  of  what  he  might  do,  for 
his  Sunday-school,  as  though  I  were  presenting  my  own 
ideal  of  a  pastor's  work  in  this  line,  a  very  natural  criti- 
cism upon  my  course  would  be — especially  on  the  part 
of  those  whose  experiences  were  farthest  from  the  standard 
thus  held  up:  "Oh!  that  is  all  very  well  in  theory,  but 
it  is  not  practicable.     A  minister  who  would  attempt  to 


262  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

do  for  his  Sunday-school  all  that  you  propose  for  him, 
would  have  to  neglect  his  other  more  important  duties 
as  a  preacher  and  as  a  pastor,  and  his  charge  would  suffer 
in  consequence."  To  forestall  this  objection  I  give  illus- 
trations of  the  successful  working  in  actual  practice  of 
every  plan  which  I  suggest  as  a  desirable  one;  and  I  cite 
in  its  favor  the  testimony  of  a  pastor  who  while  using  it 
has  been  more  than  ordinarily  efficient  in  the  general 
work  of  the  ministry.  I  go  farther  than  this;  I  even 
claim  that  no  pastor  can  be  pointed  to,  who,  in  the  neglect 
of  all  work  in  this  line,  has  been  the  means  of  bringing  a 
church  to  such  a  degree  of  efficiency,  and  of  securing  to 
it  such  permanence  of  church  life,  as  are  the  result  of 
work  of  this  character  by  the  pastors  to  whom  I  refer 
thus  illustratively. 

Take,  for  example,  the  life -record  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Constans  L.  Goodell,  whose  biography  has  recently  been 
given  to  the  world.^  Dr.  Goodell  was  pastor  first  of  a 
Congregational  church  in  New  Britain,  Connecticut,  then 
of  one  in  St.  Louis,  Missouri.  In  both  fields  he  was  singu- 
larly successful  in  bringing  his  churches  to  a  high  stand- 
ard of  living  and  giving,  and  of  growing  and  doing.  He 
has  been  called  "the  model  pastor,"^  "an  ideal  minister,"^ 
"a  remarkable  preacher."*  The  Rev.  Dr.  William  M. 
Taylor  says^  that  Dr.  Goodell  was  "  worthy  to  be  called  the 
Great-heart  of  our  Western  pulpit,"  where  he  passed  the 
later  years  of  his  life;  and  that  "his  two  churches  [East 
and  West]  were  admirably  managed,  realizing,  more  nearly 
than  most,  work  for  all,  and  a  department  for  each.     He 

1  The  Life  of  Co)i stalls  L.  Goodell,  D.D.,  by  A.  H.  Currier,  D.D. 
2  Ibid.,  p.  196.         3  /i,ui_^  p.  271.         4  Ibid.,  p.  192.  ^  Ibid.,  pp.  i.x,  xi. 


ITS  PASTOR.  263 

found  for  'every  man  his  work,'  "^  This  "  Christian  pastor, 
to  whom  was  granted  a  rare  success  in  the  gospel  minis- 
try,"^ gave  large  prominence  in  the  plans  of  his  ministerial 
life  to  the  Sunday-school  as  the  church  agency  for  dis- 
cipling  and  training  the  children  and  the  child-like;  and 
he  recognized  no  duties  as  standing  in  the  way  of  his 
presence  in  and  his  personal  ministry  to  and  through 
his  church  Sunday-school ;  even  though  he  preferred  to 
be  there  only  as  its  pastor,  rather  than  as  both  pastor  and 
superintendent — according  to  the  plan  of  Dr.  Tyng  and 
the  other  pastor  instanced  by  me. 

On  this  point  I  speak  from  my  personal  acquaintance 
with  Dr.  Goodell  in  his  ministerial  work  in  both  his  fields, 
I  recall,  for  example,  a  rainy  Sunday  when  I  attended  the 
forenoon  service  at  his  church  in  New  Britain,  and  was 
surprised  at  the  large  congregation  present  on  such  a 
day.  At  the  close  of  the  service  the  Sunday-school 
assembled.  The  number  in  attendance  was  fully  as  large 
as  that  of  the  forenoon  congregation ;  only  a  few  persons 
of  any  age  going  away  from  the  sanctuary  without  a  part 
in  the  service  of  Bible-study,  while  the  number  of  those 
who  did  leave  was  more  than  made  good  by  new  comers. 
The  pastor  was  in  the  Sunday-school  on  that  occasion  as 
always,  hardly  less  the  life  of  the  school  than  he  was  the 
life  of  the  pulpit.  Years  after,  I  found  a  similar  state  of 
things  in  his  church  and  Sunday-school  in  St.  Louis,    His 


1  Joseph  Cook,  in  the  Prelude  to  his  lecture  on  "  Phillips,  Gough,  and 
Beecher,"  at  St.  Louis,  April  17,  1888,  said  of  Dr.  Goodell :  "  He  .  .  .  was 
called,  early  in  life,  the  model  preacher  of  Connecticut ;  he  should  now  and 
always  be  called  the  model  preacher  and  pastor  of  the  Mississippi  Valley," 
{The  Advance,  May  24,  1888.) 

*  The  Life  of  Consfans  L.  Goodell,  D.  D.,  p.  3. 


264  '    THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

biographer,  indeed,  says  of  this  sphere  of  Dr.  Goodell's 
work :  "  Probably  his  labors  among,  and  for,  the  young 
of  his  pastoral  charge,  were  as  remarkable  and  important 
as  any  part  of  his  ministerial  work.  To  them  was  due 
no  small  portion  of  his  success  in  building  up  his  own 
churches,  and  making  them  the  centVes  of  power  and 
influence  which  they  became  in  the  communities  about 
them."^  He  adds  that  "Dr.  Goodell  was  as  constant  in 
his  attendance  upon  his  Sunday-school  as  the  superin- 
tendent himself"  And  he  says  that  so  closely  was  Dr. 
Goodell  identified  with  the  children  of  his  charge,  that 
"when  he  died,  a  little  boy,  of  another  church  and 
Sunday-school,  ran  home,  and  said  to  his  mother,  'O 
mamma!  the  children's  friend  is  dead.'"^ 

But  Dr.  Goodell  can  declare  his  own  views  of  the  im- 
portance of  a  pastor's  work  in  and  through  the  church 
Bible-school  even  better  than  his  biographer  or  any  out- 
side observer  can  declare  it  for  him.  In  a  little  volume,  en- 
titled "  How  to  Build  a  Church,"  Dr.  Goodell  makes  clear 
his  opinions  on  this  point.  He  says  emphatically:  "He 
who  builds  the  Church  of  Christ  must  save  the  children. 
If  we  save  the  children,  we  save  the  world.  The  world 
is  most  easily  and  effectively  saved  in  childhood.  .  .  . 
Life  and  death  are  in  the  training  of  children.  The 
generation  which  takes  the  most  children  along  with  it 
for  Christ  will  do  most  to  build  his  kingdom,  and  to  thin 
the  ranks  of  the  opposition.  .  .  .  Shepherds  increase  their 
flocks  by  carefully  nursing  the  lambs ;  so  pastors  enlarge 
their  folds  by  caring  for  the  young.  The  question  is 
being  earnestly  asked,  '  How  can  we  bring  the  men  to 

1  The  Life  of  Constans  L.  Goodell,  D.  D.,  p.  407.  ^  Ibid.,  p.  412  f. 


ITS  PASTOR.  265 

Christ?'  Bring  in  the  boys,  then  you  will  have  the 
men.  .  .  .  Seek  the  children  early,  seek  them  faithfully. 
The  pastor's  best  work  will  be  in  giving  direction  to  their 
life  at  the  start.  The  pointing  of  the  gun  determines 
the  entire  course  of  the  ball.  There  is  no  escape  from 
these  truths."  ^ 

In  describing  the  methods  of  a  pastor's  work  for  the 
young,  in  accordance  with  the  principles  thus  announced 
by  him,  Dr.  Goodell  says:  "The  pastor  will  reach  the 
children  through  the  Bible-school.  That  is  not  the  chil- 
dren's church,  but  it  is  the  church  and  pastor  mingling 
with  the  children,  and  laying  out  all  their  experience  and 
wisdom  and  spiritual  power  on  them  for  their  instruction 
in  righteousness.  The  pastor  is  always  in  the  Bible- 
school.  He  thus  brings  the  adults  and  youth  together, 
retaining  the  older  scholars  in  the  school,  ...  all  bound 
together  by  mutual  interest.  That  great  and  widening 
gulf  between  adults  and  children,  so  harmful  to  each,  is 
in  this  way  prevented.  The  Bible-school  places  an  act- 
ing-pastor in  the  person  of  the  teacher  over  each  [class] 
circle  of  youth.  It  affords  a  work  to  do  which  blesses 
both  teacher  and  pupil.  It  keeps  the  heart  warm  in  ser- 
vice, and  prepares  the  whole  church  for  usefulness.  It 
prevents  any  gap  occurring  in  the  services  of  the  church. 
The  young  worship  with  the  parents,  the  adults  study 
God's  Word  with  the  young,  and  all  grow  up  together, 
homogeneous.  The  Sabbath-school  becomes  a  constant 
feeder  of  the  church;  the  church  becomes  a  garden  en- 
closed about  the  children.  Is  not  this  God's  order  ?"^ 
It  certainly  cannot  be  wondered  at,  that  a  pastor  holding 

•  How  to  Build  a  Church,  p,  35  f.  *  Ibid.,  p.  37  f. 


266  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 

these  views  and  acting  on  these  principles  should  have 
been  so  eminently  successful  in  church  building  and  in 
church  training  as  was  Dr.  Goodell,  It  would  be  a  cause 
for  wonder  if  any  pastor  were  equally  successful  with  Dr. 
Goodell  in  church  building  and  church  training,  while 
giving  less  prominence  than  Dr,  Goodell  to  God's  order 
in  work  for  souls. 

One  good  pastor  will  work  in  one  way,  and  another  in 
another  way,  to  promote  the  welfare  of  his  Sunday- 
school,  or  of  his  Sunday-schools.  It  matters  less  that 
he  works  in  this  way  or  in  that  way,  than  that  he  works 
in  some  way,  and  this  with  a  sense  of  the  need  and  value 
of  his  working  accordingly.  Says  the  Rev.  Dr.  Abbott  E. 
Kittredge,  formerly  of  Chicago  and  now  of  New  York 
City:  "I  regard  my  relation  to  the  children  of  the  schools 
connected  with  my  church  as  a  past07'al  relation,  and  I 
therefore  visit  one,  at  least,  of  my  schools  every  Sabbath ; 
for  I  feel  that  I  must  knoiv  the  children  if  I  would  do 
them  good  spiritually,  and  they  must  know  me,  and  have 
confidence  in  me.  I  love  to  take  their  hands,  look  into 
their  happy  faces,  and  say  a  kind  word,  which  may  be  as 
seed  in  good  soil.  I  should  feel  guilty  if  I  neglected  my 
Sunday-schools,  and  my  own  experience  is  like  that  of  all 
pastors  who  love  the  children,  that  their  hearts  respond 
quickly  to  the  gospel  invitation,  and  that  the  grand  vine- 
yard for  the  sowing  and  the  reaping  is  the  Sunday-school, 
During  my  eighteen  years  in  Chicago,  I  received  hun- 
dreds of  children  to  the  church,  and  they  grew  up  to  be 
my  most  earnest  and  consecrated  members."  ^ 

In  suggesting  another  line  of  work  in  and  for  the  Sun- 

1  In  a  personal  letter  to  the  Lecturer. 


ITS  rAsfoR.  267 

day-school  by  the  pastor,  one  of  the  more  prominent 
Methodist  clergymen  in  our  country,  whose  name  I  with- 
hold at  his  request,  says :  "  My  theory  is  that  the  pastor 
should  conduct  the  teachers'- meeting,  acting  as  the 
'superintendent  of  instruction,'  the  teachers  being  his 
assistants.  Thus  he  begins  the  instruction,  and  gives  the 
key-note  to  it.  He  then,  as  I  think,  should  conduct 
the  [lesson]  review  in  the  Sunday-school  [at  the  close  of 
the  school  session],  thus  concluding  the  work  by  the 
direct  application  of  the  lesson.  For  all  this  he  should 
make  an  elaborate  preparation  ;  almost,  if  not  quite,  equal 
to  that  which  he  makes  for  his  pulpit  work.  If  it  be 
claimed  that  this  is  too  much  for  a  pastor  to  do,  then  let 
it  be  replied  that  in  some  other  department  he  should  be 
relieved,  that  he  may  do  this;  for  certainly  no  sermon 
can  reach  so  many  minds  to  so  important  and  far-reach- 
ing results  as  such  a  use  of  a  minister's  power  through 
the  Sunday-school.  One  weakness  of  the  practical  policy 
in  the  average  church  is  to  take  the  principal  teacher 
[the  pastor]  away  from  the  young  and  susceptible  minds 
of  his  flock,  and  keep  him  in  contact  with  only  the  older 
and  more  fixed  people,  upon  whom  he  can  exert  but  a 
comparatively  limited  influence.  Better  one  sermon  a 
day  in  the  general  congregation,  and  thorough  work  with 
the  children,  youth,  and  other  students  in  the  church." 

Referring  to  his  varying  methods  of  work  for  his  Sun- 
day-school in  the  different  fields  to  which  as  a  Methodist 
minister  he  is  assigned  from  year  to  year,  this  clergyman 
says :  "  When  I  have  the  time,  and  the  work  seems  to 
need  my  special  attention,  I  am  invariably  beside  the 
superintendent  on  the  platform  throughout  the  entire 
[school]  session.     I  preside  at  the  meetings  of  the  Sun- 


268  THE  SUN  DA  Y-  SCHO  OL  : 

day-school  Board,  and  offer  suggestions  when  they  are,  or 
are  not,  asked  for,  as  to  the  arrangements  of  classes  and 
teachers.  I  send  to  teachers  personal  circulars  and  tracts 
concerning  their  work ;  talk  and  pray  with  them  about 
their  responsibility,  etc.  Where  I  can  carry  out  my  ideas 
concerning  the  teachers'- meeting  and  the  review,  without 
much  friction,  I  do  so.  And  I  constantly  seek  to  dis- 
cover methods  by  which  I  can  secure  the  most  successful 
carrying  on  of  that  department  [of  church  work],  and  to 
impress  the  whole  church  with  its  superior  importance. 
Of  course,  I  am  sometimes  restricted  by  some  fellow- 
workers  who  say  my  business  is  in  \X\&  pulpit,  and  not  in 
the  Sunday-school.  But  I  manage  to  push  the  work  as 
best  I  can  even  under  such  circumstances;  seeking  to 
bring  the  teachers  to  high  standards  by  normal  teaching 
and  other  means,  encouraging  them  towards  high  ideals, 
and  to  be  satisfied  only  with  high  results.  This  I  do 
with  conscientious  persistency."^  And  so  I  might  go  on 
with  these  testimonies  of  earnest  and  judicious  pastors 
who  cultivate  their  Sunday-school  fields  with  the  most 
gratifying  results. 

It  would,  indeed,  be  well  if  every  pastor  could,  as  sug- 
gested by  the  last -cited  clergyman,  personally  conduct 
the  training  and  teaching  of  his  Sunday-school  teachers, 
in  a  regular  normal  class,  and  in  the  weekly  teachers'- 
meeting.  But  unfortunately  not  every  pastor  is  specifi- 
cally qualified  for  this  work.  In  very  many  cases  the 
pastor's  fitting  for  the  ministry  has  not  included  a  study 
of  teaching  methods,  as  distinct  from  preaching  methods; 
hence,  while  he  can  easily  tell  his  Sunday-school  teachers 

1  In  a  personal  letter  to  the  Lecturer. 


ITS  PASTOR.  269 

what  he  knows,  he  does  not  understand  how  to  test  their 
knowledge,  and  to  cause  them  individually  to  know  what 
they  individually  need  to  know;  nor  does  he  understand 
how  to  train  them  to  do  for  others  a  service  which  he  is 
not  able  to  do  for  them.  But,  even  as  things  are,  every 
pastor  can  do  something  towards  securing  this  training 
and  teaching  of  his  teachers  by  the  best  person  available 
for  it  within  the  limits  of  his  pastoral  charge.  And  God 
speed  the  day  when  every  pastor  shall  be  qualified  to  do 
this  for  himself! 

A  pastor  can,  at  least,  be  always,  or  generally,  present 
in  his  Sunday-school  at  its  regular  sessions,  and  so  be 
identified  with  its  work  and  influence,  in  the  minds  of 
both  teachers  and  scholars,  I  have  known  pastors  who 
were  particular  to  have  their  names,  as  pastors,  at  the 
head  of  the  Sunday-school  roll,  and  who  were  rarely 
absent  from  roll-call  at  the  opening  of  their  Sunday- 
school  sessions.  Again,  I  know  many  pastors  who 
usually  bear  some  part  in  the  Sunday-school  at  its  open- 
ing or  at  its  closing,  coming  thereby  into  a  closer  personal 
and  pastoral  relation  with  the  membership  of  the  Sunday- 
school  as  such,  than  would  otherwise  be  possible.  The 
pastor  whose  absence  from  a  Sunday-school  session 
would  be  regretted  as  an  exception,  has  a  hold  upon  the 
hearts  of  those  wdio  attend  that  Sunday-school,  unattain- 
able by  a  pastor  whose  presence  there  would  be  a  matter 
of  surprise,  if  not'a  cause  of  constraint. 

To  a  pastor  who  has  any  measure  of  teaching  power, 
the  closing  exercises  of  the  Sunday-school  hour  certainly 
offer  a  fine  opportunity  of  pointing  out  and  impressing  a 
lesson  truth  for  the  week,  as  the  Methodist  pastor  just 
cited  has  suggested;  and  many  a  pastor  recognizes  and 


270  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

improves  this  opportunity,  as  I  have  had  frequent  occa- 
sion to  observe.  I  recall  the  pastor  of  a  large  city  Sun- 
day-school who  was  peculiarly  effective  in  this  line.  He 
was  not  the  superintendent  of  his  Sunday-school,  but  he 
was  unmistakably  its  pastor.  During  the  latter  part  of 
the  Sunday-school  hour  he  would  be  in  the  Sunday- 
school,  passing  from  room  to  room,  with  a  pleasant  word 
or  a  pleasant  look  to  the  teachers  and  scholars  on  this 
side  and  on  that.  At  a  fitting  time  in  the  closing  exer- 
cises, he  would  rise  in  the  superintendent's  desk,  and  with 
a  few  quickly  spoken,  clean-cut  questions  he  would  bring 
out  a  point  in  the  day's  lesson,  which  he  would  press 
home  as  a  final  thought  of  the  hour,  rarely  taking  more 
than  from  three  to  five  minutes  in  this  part  of  the  service. 
I  give  an  example  of  his  work  of  this  sort,  from  my  mem- 
ory ;  not  as  a  model,  but  as  an  illustration  of  method. 

The  lesson  of  the  day  was  the  story  of  Esau's  sale  of 
his  birthright.  As  the  school  hushed  to  silence  at  the 
tap  of  the  superintendent's  bell,  the  pastor's  voice  rang 
out:  "Our  lesson  to-day" — not  j^/zr  lesson,  mark  you, 
but  <?///' lesson — "our  lesson  to-day  is  about  two  brothers. 

The  elder  brother's   name  was ?"      "Esau"   came 

back  from  five  hundred  voices  at  once.  And  the  ques- 
tioning and  answering  went  on.     "  The  younger  brother's 

name  was ? "    "Jacob."    "  Esau  was  a  hunter.    Jacob 

was  a  ?"      "Shepherd."      "They  made  a  bargain 

Avith  each  other.  What  did  Esau  self?"  "His  birth- 
right." "What  did  he  get  for  it?"  "A  mess  of  pottage." 
"  Was  the  gratification  to  Esau,  of  that  mess  of  pottage, 
short-lived  or  permanent  ?  "  "  Short-lived."  "  Would  the 
gain  of  his  birthright  have  been  short-lived  or  perma- 
nent?"    "Permanent."      "Was  Esau's  bargain  a  good 


ITS  PASTOR.  271 

one,  or  a  bad  one  ?  "  "A  bad  one."  "  Wise,  or  foolish  ?  " 
"Foolish."  "  Yes,  that's  so.  It  was  a  bad  and  foolish 
bargain  to  barter  a  permanent  gain  for  a  short-lived 
gratification.  Such  a  bargain  as  that  is  always  bad,  is 
always  foolish.  Remember  that.  Never,  never  barter 
your  good  name,  or  your  bright  hopes,  for  the  gratifica- 
tion of  your  appetite,  or  for  any  present  indulgence. 
And  the  worst  and  foolishest  bargain  of  all  is  to  barter 
your  eternal  future  for  anything  that  this  life  can  give 
you."     That  was  all.     But  was  not  that  a  great  deal? 

In  a  small  country  Sunday-school,  again,  I  found  a 
somewhat  different  method  from  this,  pursued  by  the 
pastor  in  his  closing  exercise  of  the  Sunday-school  hour. 
He  knew  the  measure  of  his  teachers  from  his  acquaint- 
ance with  them  in  the  teachers'- meeting.  Standing 
before  the  blackboard,  with  chalk  in  hand,  he  asked  one 
teacher  after  another  what  practical  point  he,  or  she,  had 
emphasized  in  the  day's  lesson  teaching.  As  the  answer 
came  back  from  the  teacher,  that  pastor  wrote  it  down 
on  the  blackboard.  When  eight  or  ten  different  points 
had  been  brought  out  in  this  way,  the  pastor  read  them 
aloud  to  the  attentive  school.  Then  he  added  a  point 
which  to  his  mind  was  a  fitting  climax  of  the  series, 
writing  it  on  the  blackboard  as  he  stated  it.  The  series 
of  practical  points  thus  recorded  was  read  aloud  by 
the  entire  school  in  concert.  The  pastor  pressed  his 
climax-point  in  a  single  sentence,  and  the  lesson  of  the 
day  stood  in  a  new  light  before  all  the  school  of  his 
charge.  And  so  in  the  small  Sunday-school  as  in  the 
large  one,  in  the  country  as  in  the  city,  the  pastor  can 
do  a  work  of  teaching  and  of  preaching,  in  a  few  minutes 
well  used  in  his  Sunday-school,  in  addition  to  and  beyond 


2/2  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

all  that  he  can  do  elsewhere.  The  pastor  who  neglects 
this  opportunity  neglects  it  to  his  own  loss,  to  the  loss 
of  his  Sunday-school,  and  to  the  loss  of  the  church  of 
which  he  is  the  pastor. 

Many  a  pastor  shows  his  interest  in  the  Sunday-school 
by  teaching  a  Bible-class.  This  is  well  as  far  as  it  goes. 
It  certainly  is  better  than  for  the  pastor  to  have  no  imme- 
diate connection  with  the  Sunday-school.  But,  at  the 
best,  a  pastor  as  the  teacher  of  a  single  class  is  in  the 
Sunday-school  as  a  teacher  rather  than  as  the  pastor;  just 
as  he  is  in  the  Sunday-school  as  the  superintendent, 
rather  than  as  the  pastor,  when  he  superintends  his  Sun- 
day-school. It  is  well  for  a  pastor  to  be  able  and  to  be 
willing,  if  need  be,  to  act  as  superintendent,  as  teacher, 
or  as  singing-leader,  in  his  Sunday-school,  or  even  to 
fill  all  three  of  these  offices  at  the  same  time.  But  it  is 
obviously  better  for  a  pastor,  when  he  has  the  will,  the 
ability,  and  the  training  thereto,  to  be  the  recognized 
pastor  of  the  Sunday-school,  over  the  teachers,  over  the 
singing-leader,  and  over  the  superintendent,  with  com- 
petent and  trustworthy  persons  under  him  in  all  these 
stations;  he  giving  added  efficiency  to  them  all,  in  and 
through  his  official  relation  and  his  personal  work,  as 
their  pastor.  Indeed,  the  less  a  pastor  has  to  do  for  a 
Sunday-school  in  any  other  sphere  than  that  of  the 
pastor,  the  more  he  can  do  effectively  for  his  Sunday- 
school  in  the  pastor's  sphere.  Hence  the  chief  practical 
present  question  for  the  average  pastor  is,  How  can  I  do 
most  and  best  for  my  Sunday-school,  while  working  in 
and  for  it  toward  this  higher  ideal? 

So  long  as  a  pastor  is  only  the  pastor  in  his  Sunday- 
school,  not  immediately  filling  any  subordinate  office,  he 


ITS  PASTOR.  273 

will,  of  course,  as  a  wise  pastor,  have  due  regard  to  those 
who  hold  other  offices  in  his  Sunday-school,  Although 
he  is  over  the  superintendent,  he  is  not  the  superin- 
tendent; nor  is  it  for  him  to  direct  the  details  of  the 
work  committed  to  the  superintendent,  nor  to  control 
the  action  of  those  who  are  under  the  superintendent, 
except  through,  or  by  arrangement  with,  the  superin- 
tendent. There  is  no  surer  way  of  getting  good  work 
from  one  in  any  subordinate  position  of  authority  than 
by  laying  upon  that  subordinate  the  fullest  responsibility 
within  his  sphere,  and  showing  confidence  in  him  as  thus 
responsible;  even  while  watching  his  work  with  a  sense 
of  larger  responsibility  for  him  and  for  his  work  as  his 
superior.  A  good  commander,  on  land  or  on  sea,  is 
always  careful  to  avoid  any  seeming  ignoring  or  over- 
riding of  the  authority  of  a  subordinate,  within  the  com- 
mand of  that  subordinate;  and  a  good  pastor  ought  to 
have,  so  far,  the  qualities  of  a  good  commander  in  his 
sphere.  What  he  desires  to  have  done  in  the  realm  of 
the  superintendent's  authority,  the  pastor  will  seek  to  do 
through  the  superintendent  himself,  or  with  his  cordial 
assent. 

If,  indeed,  the  pastor  finds  that  the  superintendent  of 
his  Sunday-school  is  not  fitted  for  his  place,  or  is  not 
willing  to  co-work  heartily  with  and  in  recognition  of 
the  authority  of  his  pastor,  it  is  for  the  pastor  to  decide 
whether  he  shall,  as  a  matter  of  wise  expediency,  con- 
tinue to  bear  with  the  superintendent  in  that  incom- 
petency, or  in  that  bad  spirit;  or  shall  at  once  set  himself 
to  get  a  better  man  in  the  position  of  superintendent  of 
his  Sunday-school.  Meanwhile,  however,  whatever  be 
his  decision  on  this  point,  the  pastor  will  bear  in  mind, 


274  THE  SLNDAY-SCHOOL: 

religiously,  that  while  the  superintendent  is  superin- 
tendent he  is  just  as  truly  the  superintendent  as  the 
pastor  is  pastor  while  he  is  the  pastor.  With  this  un- 
derstanding of  the  proper  relation  of  things,  there  is  little 
danger  of  unpleasant  clashing  between  a  pastor  and  his 
superintendent,  however  much  patient  doing  or  enduring 
there  may  be  on  the  pastor's  part  in  bringing  the  Sunday- 
school  management  to  where  it  ought  to  be. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  better  fitted  a  pastor  is  for  his 
place  and  work  as  the  pastor  of  his  Sunday-school,  the 
more  likely  he  is  to  be  in  both  right  and  pleasant  rela- 
tions to  all  who  are  connected  with  his  Sunday-school, 
and  to  have  under  him  those  who  co-work  heartily  with 
him,  while  they  look  up  to  him  with  loving  confidence 
and  honor.  On  this  point  I  speak  in  view  of  a  somewhat 
extended  and  varied  personal  observation  in  the  Sunday- 
school  field  generally.  A  good  illustration  of  the  truth 
may,  indeed,  be  given  from  one  of  the  Sunday-schools 
to  which  I  have  already  referred  in  this  lecture,  as  show- 
ing a  wise  pastor's  wise  work ;  a  school  which  stands  out 
in  my  memory  as  one  of  the  best  managed  country  Sun- 
day-schools I  ever  saw. 

When  I  spoke  with  warmth,  to  the  superintendent  of 
that  Sunday-school,  of  its  methods  and  their  working, 
he  responded  in  all  heartiness:  "Our  pastor  has  done 
all  this.  He  deserves  the  whole  credit.  He  has  trained 
our  teachers.  He  made  our  song-roll  for  us.  He  leads 
our  singing.  He  is  always  in  the  school.  He  presses 
home  the  lesson  at  the  close  of  the  study  hour.  He 
brings  the  church  to  see  its  duty  to  the  Sunday-school. 
In  fact,  he  does  pretty  much  everything."  That  sounded 
very  pleasantly.     But  the  very  next  day,  when  I  spoke 


ITS  PASTOR.  275 

to  that  pastor  about  his  Sunday-school,  without  his 
knowing  what  had  been  said  to  me  of  his  part  in  it,  he 
said  warmly:  "Our  superintendent  is  everything  in  our 
Sunday-school.  He  spares  neither  time  nor  money  to 
help  it  along.  He  is  earnest  and  faithful.  He  is  full  of 
expedients.  I  could  do  nothing  without  our  superin- 
tendent. In  fact,  he  is  the  Sunday-school."  That  also 
sounded  pleasantly.  Those  two  views  of  that  one  Sun- 
day-school were  in  a  sense  one  and  the  same  view.  Each 
view  was  a  half-truth  essential  to  the  completeness  of  the 
other  half.  And  so  it  will  be,  always,  where  pastor  and 
superintendent  are  competent  to  and  are  faithful  in  their 
work.  They  are  "fellow-workers  with  the  truth,"  "in 
honor  preferring  one  another,"  "each  counting  [the] 
other  better  than  himself,"  as  they  labor  together  in  one 
spirit  toward  a  common  end. 

It  appears,  indeed,  that  the  pastor  of  a  local  church  as 
a  pastor,  as  a  shepherd  of  the  Master's  flock,  ought  to 
recognize  the  place  and  part  of  the  Sunday-school  in  the 
organization  and  plans  of  the  church,  for  the  shepherd- 
ing of  the  sheep  and  for  the  feeding  of  the  lambs  in  the 
church-fold.  Through  the  church  he  ought  to  secure 
to  the  Sunday-school  its  proper  church  control  and  its 
due  membership,  together  with  needful  time  and  fitting 
accommodations  for  its  exercises.  As  the  head  of  the 
church,  he  should  feel  his  responsibility  for  the  wise  con- 
duct of  the  Sunday-school,  and  for  the  nature,  character, 
and  measure  of  its  instructions.  His  persistent  endeavor 
should  be  to  have  the  Sunday-school  well  officered,  and 
to  have  its  teachers  carefully  selected  and  faithfully  and 
efficiendy  trained.    He  should  be  personally  familiar  with 


276  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL.      ' 

the  workings  of  his  Sunday-school,  frequently,  if  not  gen- 
erally, present  at  its  sessions,  and  unfailingly  ready  in 
counsel,  suggestion,  and  sympathy,  with  those  who  are 
in  immediate  charge  of  its  every  department  of  activity. 
If  all  is  at  present  as  it  should  be,  in  the  organization 
and  workings  of  his  Sunday-school,  it  is  for  the  pastor 
to  keep  them  at  that  standard.  If  change  is  needed,  it  is 
for  the  pastor  to  bring  about  the  needful  change,  without 
unnecessary  delay  or  unnecessary  friction.  This  should 
be  the  ideal  and  the  aim  of  the  pastor,  toward  which  his 
thoughts  and  his  labors  should  tend.  Until  his  Sunday- 
school  is  all  that  it  ought  to  be,  a  pastor  ought  to  deem 
himself  on  trial  as  its  pastor. 


LECTURE   VIII. 

THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL:    ITS  AUXILIARY 
TRAINING   AGENCIES. 


VIII. 

THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL:    ITS  AUXILIARY 
TRAINING  AGENCIES. 

Threefold  Training  Work  in  Every  Sphere. —  EnHstment,  Instruc- 
tion, and  Drill. — Pulpit,  School,  and  Gymnasia. — Gain  through 
Practice  Methods. —  Loss  through  their  Lack. — Ancient  and 
Modern  Illustrations  of  this. —  Juvenile  Missionary  Societies. 
— Juvenile  Temperance  Societies. —  Church  Guilds. — Young 
Christian  Bands. —  Young  People's  Society  of  Christian  En- 
deavor.—  Gain  to  the  Workers  the  Primary  Aim. —  A  Pastor's 
Place  in  such  Work. —  Many  Members,  but  One  Body. 

In  every  process  of  training  to  service,  there  is  the 
threefold  work  of  winning  to  the  service,  of  informing 
concerning  the  service,  and  of  exercising  in  the  service ; 
of  enlistment,  of  instruction,  and  of  drill.  In  the  lack  of 
any  one  of  these  three  factors,  the  training  process  is 
incomplete;  whether  it  be  in  the  sphere  of  mechanical, 
of  mental,  or  of  moral  service. 

A  carpenter's  apprentice,  a  farm  hand,  a  sailor  boy,  or 
a  young  soldier,  must  first  be  won,  or  attracted,  or  in 
some  way  secured,  to  his  new  line  of  service;  then  he 
must  be  informed  concerning  his  particular  duties  in  his 
sphere ;  after  that  he  must  be  exercised,  or  practiced,  or 
drilled,  in  those  duties.  It  is  not  enough  for  him  to  want 
to  do,  nor  yet  for  him  to  want  to  do  and  to  know  how 
to  do;  in  order  to  his  full  training,  he  must  evidence  his 

279 


28o  THE  SUN  DA  \  -  SCHO  OL  : 

ability  to  do  that  which  he  has  been  instructed  to  do, 
and  which  he  has  undertaken  to  do.  A  pupil  in  the 
elementary  branches  of  knowledge,  a  student  in  any 
branch  of  art,  a  novice  in  any  one  of  the  learned  profes- 
sions, must  not  only  be  aroused  to  an  interest  in  the 
sj^here  he  has  entered;  he  must  also  have  instruction  in 
its  principles  and  details,  and  then  he  must  acquire  by 
actual  experiment,  or  practice,  some  measure  of  pro- 
ficiency in  the  exercise  of  his  powers  as  thus  directed, 
before  he  can  be  said  to  be  trained  for  service  in  his 
chosen  sphere.  In  the  moral  realm,  as  in  the  mechanical 
and  in  the  mental,  the  work  of  attracting  the  individual 
to  right  service,  and  of  informing  him  concerning  its 
details,  must  be  complemented  by  his  practice  in  that 
line,  or  he  is  yet  untrained,  morally.  A  child  who  is 
told  of  the  pleasures  and  the  gain  of  Bible-reading  and 
of  prayer,  and  of  the  benefits  which  come  from  self-deny- 
ing beneficence,  and  who  has  received  specific  instruction 
concerning  the  methods  of  such  well-doing,  cannot  be 
counted  as  trained  in  such  well-doing,  until  he  has  been 
induced  to  read  the  Bible,  and  to  pray,  and  to  give  to  and 
to  do  for  others  at  a  real  cost  to  himself  As,  so  far,  it  is 
in  every  other  sphere  of  training,  so  pre-eminently  it 
is  in  the  training  of  the  young  in  and  by  the  Church 
of  Christ. 

Exercise,  or  practice,  or  drill,  being  an  essential  factor 
in  the  training  process,  and  the  Church  being  divinely 
set  to  the  work  of  training,  the  Church  must,  as  a  matter 
of  course,  be  ready  to  provide  exercise,  or  practice,  or 
drill,  in  the  direction  of  its  training,  for  those  persons 
whose  formal  training  it  has  undertaken.  From  of  old 
there  can  have  been  no  other  way  than  this.     The  three 


ITS  AUXILIARY  TRAINING  AGENCIES.        28 1 

hundred  and  eighteen  "trained"  men  whom  Abraham 
took  with  him  in  pursuit  of  Chedorlaomer^  could  never 
have  done  the  brilHant  work  they  did  in  that  campaign, 
unless  they  were  already  practiced  in  the  line  of  cam- 
paigning and  of  the  use  of  weapons  of  war.  The  seven 
hundred  Benjamites,  in  the  days  of  the  Judges,  "every 
one  [of  whom]  could  sling  stones  at  an  hair-breadth  and 
not  miss,"^  never  acquired  their  efficiency  without  prac- 
tice, whoever  enlisted  or  whoever  instructed  them.  In 
that  much  misused  injunction  in  Proverbs,^  "Train  up  a 
child  in  the  way  he  should  go,"  the  suggestion  is  that  a 
child  ought  to  be  started  upon,  and  exercised  or  practiced 
in,  the  line  of  conduct  or  action  which  is  peculiarly  his 
own,  or  for  which  he  individually  is  adapted,  if  you 
would  have  him  adhere  to  that  line  when  he  is  grown 
up.*  The  Rabbis,  in  their  application  of  this  inspired 
injunction,  say:  "At  nine  or  ten  years  of  age  the  child  is 
to  be  habituated  [practiced]  to  perform  his  religious 
duties  [in  order]  to  make  habit  [the  habit  of  right  action] 
the  second  nature."  ^  It  is  not  enough  that  he  is  already 
in  the  religious  community,  and  that  he  is  instructed 
concerning  his  religious  duties,  —  without  practice  in 
those  duties  he  is  yet  untrained  in  religion. 

Plato,  as  representing  the  best  classic  thought  on  this 

1  Gen.  14  :  14.  2  Judg.  20 :  16.  '  Prov.  22 :  6. 

*"The  Hebrew,  'according  to  the  tenor  of  his  way,'  means  the  path 
specially  belonging  to,  specially  fitted  for,  the  individual's  character.  Instead 
of  sanctioning  a  rigorous  monotony  of  discipline  under  the  notion  that  it  is 
'  the  right  way,'  the  proverb  enjoins  the  closest  possible  study  of  each  child's 
temperament,  and  the  adaptation  of '  his  way  of  life  '  to  that  "  (  The  Speaker's 
Comm.,  in  loco).  It  is  not.  Train  up  a  child  in_>'o«r  way  ;  but  it  is.  Train  up  a 
child  in  his  way, — the  way  which  befits  him, — if  you  would  have  him  keep  in 
that  way,  when  he  is  old  enough  to  choose  for  himself.  *  Yoma,  82. 


282  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

point,  seems  to  paraphrase  and  illustrate  the  injunction 
in  Proverbs  when  he  says :  "  He  who  would  be  good  at 
anything  must  practice  that  thing  from  his  youth  up- 
wards, both  in  sport  and  earnest,  in  the  particular  manner 
which  the  work  requires.  For  example,  he  who  is  to  be 
a  good  builder  should  play  at  building  children's  houses, 
and  he  who  is  to  be  a  good  husbandman,  at  tilling  the 
ground.  Those  who  have  the  care  of  their  education 
should  provide  them  when  young  with  mimic  tools 
[accordingly].  And  they  should  learn  beforehand  the 
knowledge  which  they  will  afterwards  require  for  their 
art.  For  example,  the  future  carpenter  should  learn  to 
measure  or  apply  the  line  in  play;  and  the  future  warrior 
should  learn  riding,  or  some  other  exercise  for  amuse- 
ment; and  the  teacher  should  endeavor  to  direct  the 
children's  inclinations  and  pleasures  by  the  help  of  their 
amusements,  to  their  final  aim  in  life,  .  .  .  The  soul  of 
the  child  in  his  play  should  be  trained  to  that  sort  of 
excellence  in  which,  when  he  grows  up  to  manhood,  he 
will  have  to  be  perfected."  *  Or  as  a  wiser  than  Plato 
had  said:  "Train  up  a  child  in  the  [particular]  way  he 
should  go:  and  [if  you  do  this,  then]  when  he  is  old,  he 
will  not  depart  from  it." 

So  prominent  in  the  Jewish  mind  was  this  idea  of 
practice  as  an  essential  factor  in  the  training  process, 
that  even  the  highest  members  of  the  priestly  order  are 
said  to  have  been  kept  in  practice,  under  special  in- 
structors, in  the  line  of  their  priestly  duties.  It  is  even 
said  that  the  High  Priest  himself  was  taken  in  charge  by 
Rabbinical  experts,  for  seven  days  before  the  great  Day 

1  Laws,  Bk.  i.,  in  Jowett's  Dialogues  of  Plato,  IV.,  164  f. 


ITS  A I  WILLI  R  V  TRAINING  AGENCIES.        283 

of  Atonement,  in  order  that  he  might  practice  himself 
under  their  scrutiny  in  the  details  of  his  peculiar  duties 
in  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  that  day.^ 

Our  Lord  in  training  his  band  of  apostles  first  enlisted 
them  as  his  followers;^  then  he  instructed  them  in  the 
principles^  and  methods  of  the  service  to  which  they 
were  called;  after  this  he  sent  them  out  to  practice  in 
the  line  of  his  instructions  to  them.*  This  was  and  is  the 
one  true  method  in  right  training,  and  of  course  it  was 
adopted  by  our  Lord  in  his  work. 

The  threefold  work  of  winning,  of  informing,  and  of 
exercising, — of  enlistment,  of  instruction,  and  of  drill, — 
must  proceed,  wherever  the  training  process  is  made 
practical,  to  the  completion  of  the  religious  life  of  young 
disciples  of  Christ,  to-day.  The  first  factor  in  this  work 
we  may  say  is  represented  by  the  pulpit;  the  second,  by 
the  Sunday-school ;  the  third,  by  those  auxiliary  agencies 
of  guilds  and  bands  and  associations  and  societies  and 
orders  and  leagues  and  circles,  for  the  prosecution  of 
particular  lines  of  effort,  or  for  the  cultivation  of  par- 
ticular virtues,  which  for  lack  of  a  better  name  may  be 
counted  as  the  "gymnasia"  of  the  church,  (using  that 
term  in  its  classical  signification,)  in  which  the  young 
membership  is  to  have  practice  in  moral  and  spiritual 
athletics. 

There  is,  indeed,  a  certain  appropriateness  in  the  desig- 
nation "gymnasia,"  as  applied  to  this  class  of  practice 

^  See  Geikie's  Life  and  Words  of  Christ,  I.,  549  f.,  note  e ;  with  citations 
from  Jost  and  Cohen. 

2  Matt.  10  :  2-4 ;  Mark  3  :  13-19  ;  Luke  6  :  12-16  ;  John  i :  35-51. 

'  Matt.  5  :  1-48  ;  6 :  1-34 ;  7  :  1-29. 

*  Matt.  lo :  1-42 ;  Mark  6 :  7-13 ;  Luke  9 :  1-6. 


284  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

agencies  of  the  church,  in  view  of  the  fact  that  the 
ancient  gymnasium  made  provision  for  the  development 
of  the  physical,  the  mental,  and  the  moral  powers  of  its 
pupils,  under  the  control  of  carefully  framed  laws,  and 
under  the  direction  and  watch  of  skilled  and  judicious 
gymnasiarchs.^  This  was  one  of  the  chief  agencies  by 
which  the  ancient  Greeks  sought  to  bring  their  youth  to 
the  standard  of  the  highest  and  completest  manhood  of 
which  they  had  any  conception.^  It  would  be  truly  a 
pity  if  Christians  were  less  ready  than  the  classic  heathen 
to  employ  every  well-devised  means  for  the  promoting 
of  the  growth  of  each  individual  disciple  of  Jesus  "unto 
a  full-grown  man,  unto  the  measure  of  the  stature  of  the 
fullness  of  Christ."^  It  is  seemingly  in  recognition  of 
this  duty  of  the  Church,  that  in  Germany,  where  the 
Church  is  represented  in  the  State,  the  term  "gymnasia" 
is  still  applied  to  those  schools  where  exercise  and  prac- 
tice in  the  various  branches  of  preparatory  study  are 
secured  to  those  who  are  in  training  for  the  highest 
duties  of  a  Christian  manhood. 

Without  the  results  of  church  gymnasium  exercising, 
the  church-membership  can  never  be  at  its  best.  So 
long  as  the  church  devotes  its  energies  chiefly  to  secur- 
ing new  recruits,  and  telling  them  what  they  ought  to 

1  See  art.  "Gymnasium,"  in  Encyc.  Brit.;  also  Mahaffy's  Social  Life  in 
Greece,  pp.  332-334. 

*  Professor  Mahaffy,  in  his  Social  Life  in  Greece  (p.  330  f.),  says  that  the 
"  extraordinary  attention  to  which  Greelc  boys  were  liable,  made  their  moral 
training,  when  successful,  more  perfect  than  any  now  aimed  at,  even  by  the 
strictest  parents.  In  fact,  the  higher  education  of  a  Greek  boy  combined, 
with  the  best  physical  and  intellectual  training  then  attainable,  a  moral  super- 
vision as  strict  as  that  which  we  practice  in  bringing  up  our  daughters." 
^  Eph.  4:  11-13. 


ITS  A UXII. lARY  TRA LYING  A GENCIES.        285 

do,  without  setting  them  at  work,  and  guiding  and  over- 
seeing their  work,  the  church  will  never  be  brought  to 
that  degree  of  effectiveness  which  is  its  duty  and  its 
pri\-ilege  in  the  plan  of  its  Founder.  Force  and  effi- 
ciency in  any  organization  as  an  organization  are  always 
to  be  measured  by  that  skill  which  comes  through  dis- 
cipline and  practice,  rather  than  by  mere  numbers.  A 
thousand  men  thoroughly  trained  as  soldiers  are  more 
than  a  match  for  ten  thousand  men  in  a  mob,  as  truly  in 
our  day  as  in  the  days  of  Abraham  and  of  the  Judges.' 
An  army  is  not  made  an  army  by  successful  recruiting 
agents,  nor  yet  by  well-informed  military  instructors. 
The  drill  and  exercise  of  the  soldiers  personally  go  far 
to  settle  the  practical  value  of  an  army  as  an  army.  This 
is  as  true  of  the  Christian  host  as  of  any  other.  If  one- 
tenth  of  its  members  were  what  they  might  become  by 
wise  training,  the  power  of  this  host  as  a  host  would  be 
mightier  by  far  than  it  is  to-day;  for  a  trained  soldier  is 
more  than  ten  times  the  measure  of  a  new  recruit. 

"Herein  is  my  Father  glorified,"  says  our  Lord,  "that 
ye  bear  much  fruit;  and  so  shall  ye  be  my  disciples." ^ 
Not  more  branches,  but  more  on  each  branch,  is  the 
longing  of  the  great  Husbandman;  not  more  of  the  dis- 
ciples, but  more  in  the  disciples.  Any  plan  of  church 
work  which  promotes  the  fruitage  of  the  several  branches 
is  quite  as  sure  to  have  our  Lord's  approval  as  is  any 
plan  which  merely  multiplies  the  branches.  Yet  this 
does  not,  by  any  means,  seem  to  be  the  controlling  idea 
of  pastors  and  teachers  generally  in  their  direction  of 
church  work.     They  are  more  likely  to  find  satisfaction 

1  See  p.  280  f.,  ante.  *  John  15  :  8. 


286  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

in  those  lines  of  effort  which  multiply  souls,  than  in  those 
which  improve  souls. 

Just  here  I  recall  an  illustration,  however,  of  one  Con- 
necticut pastor  who  entertained  the  less  common  opinion 
of  the  true  measure  of  church  efficiency.  He  was  over 
one  of  the  largest  and  most  prominent  churches  in  the 
state;  but  he  was  by  no  means  satisfied  with  the  spiritual 
attainments  of  its  membership.  He  was  in  conference 
with  several  of  his  ministerial  brethren  over  a  proposal 
to  invite  a  well-known  evangelist  to  labor  in  their  im- 
mediate field.  He  expressed  a  readiness  to  co-operate  in 
any  such  effort  to  promote  the  religious  welfare  of  the 
community.  "Well,"  said  one  of  the  ministers,  "I  hope 
the  evangelist  will  come;  for  even  if  the  time  is  not  quite 
ripe  for  him,  he  may  be  the  means  of  bringing  in  a  few 
additions  to  our  church-membership."  "Oh!  that's  not 
what  I'm  hoping  for,"  said  this  pastor  earnestly.  "It's 
not  any  more  members  that  I  want;  but  it's  improve- 
ment in  those  I  have.  Why,  I'd  refuse  an  offer  to-day  of 
two  hundred  more  of  the  average  sort  now  in  my  church. 
But  if  an  evangelist  can  stir  up  a  few  of  those  I  have,  and 
bring  them  to  a  fair  standard  of  Christian  activity,  I'll 
hold  up  both  hands  for  his  coming,  and  will  sit  up  nights 
to  pray  for  him."  Even  though  that  view  of  the  case  is 
a  somewhat  distorted  one,  it  is  quite  as  near  the  truth  as 
one  which  sees  the  chief  gain  of  a  church  in  additions  to 
its  membership,  rather  than  in  its  enlarged  measure  of 
spiritual  efficiency. 

Like  all  other  good  agencies  of  the  Church  of  Christ, 
these  practice  agencies,  or  the  church  gymnasia  as  I  have 
called  them,  have  had  new  prominence  and  added  power 
in  Protestant  Christendom  since  the  modern  revival  and 


ITS  A  UXILIAR  Y  TRAINING  A GENCIES.        287 

expansion  of  the  church  teaching  agency.  They  have 
never  been  lost  sight  of  in  the  Church  of  Rome,  where 
they  have  been  represented — and  too  often  misrepre- 
sented— by  societies,  and  orders,  and  fraternities  for  the 
promotion  of  the  spiritual  life  of  their  members,  and  for 
the  prosecution  of  various  kinds  ot  Christian  service — 
apart  from  the  great  missionary  societies  of  that  church. 
But  it  is  only  within  the  last  century  or  so  that  Protestant 
Christians  generally  have  made  extensive  or  systematic 
use  of  these  agencies.  They  were  not  unknown  in  the 
Moravian  Church,  in  connection  with  its  class-traming 
system,  at  a  much  earlier  date.  It  was  in  17 17  that 
Baron  Watteville,  a  fellow-student  of  Count  Zinzendorf, 
started  one  of  these  helps  to  Christian  exercise  under  the 
name  of  "The  Order  of  the  Grain  of  Mustard  Seed;"^ 
and  it  is  even  clear  that  it  was  through  the  example  of  the 
Moravians  that  John  Wesley  made  the  class -meeting  as 
a  practice  agency  for  young  converts  an  essential  feature 
of  his  new  organization.^  Those  Methodist  class-meet- 
ings have  certainly  done  much  to  practice  their  members 
in  social  prayer,  and  in  Christian  testimony  and  exhor- 
tation, and  so  far  to  promote  their  personal  religious 
training. 

It  was  in  the  form  of  juvenile  missionary  societies  that 
this  complemental  factor  in  the  training  process  first 
gained  a  hold  on  Sunday-school  workers  generally.  The 
children  and  youth  of  a  Sunday-school  were  associated 
into  a  formal  missionary  organization,  each  class  being 
made  a  separate  branch  of  the  main  school  society,  and 
all  were  practiced  in  giving  to  the  missionary  cause,  and 

1  See  Tyerman's  Life  of  Wesley,  I.,  196.  *  See  p.  106  f.,  ante. 


288  THE  SUNDA  V- SCHOOL  : 

in  hearing  and  telling  of  its  importance  and  its  progress, 
and  in  managing  the  details  of  plans  for  its  furthering. 
The  results  of  this  kind  of  effort  were  an  illustration  of 
its  surpassing  value.  The  sums  of  money  contributed 
by  the  young  givers  were  a  surprise  to  those  who  had 
been  most  sanguine  of  liberal  offerings  by  the  children.^ 
They  put  to  shame  the  gifts  of  many  a  wealthy  church, 
and  their  magnitude  tended  directly  to  raise  the  standard 
of  missionary  giving  in  the  churches  which  they  indirectly 
represented,  especially  when  the  children  thus  trained  to 
giving  and  doing  in  behalf  of  missions  grew  up  to  take 
the  place  of  those  who  had  not  been  similarly  trained  in 
childhood.  And  now  these  juvenile  missionary  societies 
and  bands  are  a  prominent  feature  in  the  training  work 
of  Protestant  churches  generally. 

It  is  by  practice,  not  by  hearsay  merely,  that  children 
learn  the  truth  that  "  it  is  more  blessed  to  give  than  to 
receive;"^  and  they  can  hardly  begin  too  early  in  the 

1  One  of  the  earlier  successful  experiments  in  this  line  was  made,  in  1847, 
by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Richard  Newton,  in  the  Sunday-school  of  St.  Paul's  (Epis- 
copal) Church,  Philadelphia,  which  was  then  in  his  charge.  Describing  this 
experiment  and  its  results  before  the  National  Sunday-school  Convention  in 
Philadelphia,  February  22-24,  1859,  (as  reported  in  TAe  Sunday  School  Times 
for  March  5,  1859,  p.  7')  Dr.  Newton  said:  "  It  is  about  twelve  years  since  we 
commenced,  in  the  church  with  which  I  am  connected,  the  system  of  con- 
necting an  offering  with  our  Sunday-school  anniversaries.  It  was  commenced 
in  great  feebleness  and  great  trembling.  When  the  matter  was  about  to  be 
undertaken,  one  of  the  teachers  thought,  'Well,  perhaps,  with  great  effort, 
we  may  be  able  to  roll  up  as  much  as  ^25  ! '  The  first  offering  amounted  to 
^100.  From  that  day  the  system  has  continued,  the  interest  increasing  every 
year.  There  is  no  forcing  :  it  is  a  spontaneous  work  ;  it  comes  up  like  water 
from  the  fountain  ;  it  gushes  out  freely  and  fully.  It  has  kept  rolling  on, 
rolling  on  ;  and  last  year  the  offering  was  ^2,600,  from  a  school  of  five  hun- 
dred children  and  fifty  or  sixty  teachers, — not  children  in  wealthy  position, 
but  many  of  them  children  of  the  poor,  most  of  them  children  of  those  in 
ordinary  circumstances."  *  Acts  20  :  35. 


ITS  A  UXILIAR  V  TRAINING  A GENCIES.       289 

line  of  this  practice.  I  heard  the  Rev.  Dr.  Titus  Coan, 
the  veteran  missionary  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  tell  of 
seeing  the  Christian  mothers  among  the  native  Hawaiians 
bring  their  infants  in  arms  up  to  the  church  contribution 
box,  and  practice  them  there  in  giving  money  into  the 
Lord's  treasury.  The  mother  would  put  a  piece  of 
money  into  her  child's  hand.  With  the  instinct  of  nature 
— not  of  grace — the  little  fingers  would  close  tightly  over 
the  money,  and  hold  it  fast.  Then  the  mother  would 
take  the  child's  arm  by  the  wrist,  and  hold  the  little  hand 
over  the  contribution  box,  and  with  gentle  firmness  would 
shake  the  hand  until  its  grasp  on  the  money  was  loosened, 
and  the  coin  dropped  into  the  box.  The  mother's  loving 
smile  and  words  of  approval  were  the  child's  reward  for 
its  submissiveness;  and  the  frequent  repetition  of  this 
process  brought  the  child  to  a  certain  enjoyment  of 
winning  his  mother's  commendation  in  this  way,  and  of 
performing  an  act  to  which  he  was  urged.  Thus  it  was 
that,  before  the  child  was  able  to  go  alone,  he  was  in  the 
habit  of  bearing  a  part  in  missionary  giving;  and  by  the 
whole  course  of  his  training,  of  which  this  was  a  portion, 
he  found  the  blessedness  of  being  a  giver  in  behalf  of  the 
Lord's  cause. 

It  is  by  methods  of  practice  in  the  line  of  Christian 
giving  that  children  of  the  poorer  classes  in  the  mission- 
schools  of  city  and  of  country  have  so  generally  been 
brought  to  enjoy  giving,  to  an  extent  unknown  in  many 
a  rich  man's  home.  It  is  not  merely  because  they  are 
asked  to  give,  nor  yet  because  they  are  instructed  in 
their  duty  to  give,  but  it  is  by  their  being  exercised  in 
giving,  that  children  become  familiar  with  the  delights  of 
giving,  and  that  they  form   the   habit  of  giving  gladly. 

19 


290  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

It  is  likewise  by  the  test  of  practice  that,  in  so  many 
Sunday-schools,  children  have  found  more  enjoyment  in 
bringing  in  their  offerings  for  others  at  Christmas,  than 
ever  they  found  in  the  receiving  of  gifts  from  the  Sunday- 
school,  when  tJiat  was  the  custom.^  Indeed,  the  mis- 
sionary cause  in  its  every  aspect  owes  much,  at  the 
present  time,  to  the  missionary  spirit  which  has  been 
developed  by  its  exercising  in  giving  and  doing,  as  a 
part  of  the  training  process  in  and  through  the  Sunday- 
school  and  its  co-operative  agencies. 

Next,  perhaps,  in  early  prominence,  after  the  juvenile 
missionary  societies,  as  a  practice  agency  in  conjunction 
with  the  Sunday-school,  there  came  the  juvenile  total- 
abstinence  societies.  It  was  forty-six  years  ago  that  I 
became  a  member  of  an  organization  of  this  nature, 
known  as  the  "  Cold  Water  Army,"  which  had  its  com- 
panies in  most  of  the  towns  and  villages  of  my  native 

1  In  1869,  Mr.  Henry  P.  Haven,  of  New  London,  Connecticut,  introduced 
into  the  Sunday-school  of  the  Second  Congregational  Church,  of  which  he 
was  superintendent,  the  plan  of  having  the  teachers  and  scholars  bring 
Christmas  gifts  to  the  Lord,  instead  of  receiving  them,  as  formerly,  in  the  name 
of  the  Lord.  This  plan  worked  admirably  in  his  field,  and  it  has  been  widely 
adopted  in  other  Sunday-schools  elsewhere.  An  account  of  this  method  and 
of  its  workings  is  to  be  found  in  A  Alodel  Superintendent  (pp.  33,  84  f.). 
Illustrations  of  the  successful  working  of  this  plan  are  to  be  found,  also,  in 
The  Sunday  School  Times  for  January  21,  1882;  for  November  24,  and  for 
December  i,  1883;  and  for  December  27,  1884.  In  1879  this  plan  was  mtro- 
duced  into  the  Sunday-school  of  the  Walnut  Street  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Philadelphia.  In  advance  of  its  adoption  it  was  laid  before  the  scholars  in 
the  Sunday-school,  in  order  that  they  might  decide  for  themselves  whether 
they  should  receive  Christmas  gifts  as  was  the  custom  there  until  then,  or 
shovild  bring  Christmas  giftb  into  the  Lord's  treasury  for  the  benefit  of  the 
Lord's  dear  ones.  They  voted  twenty  to  one  in  favor  of  the  change.  From 
that  time  to  the  present  the  plan  has  grown  in  favor  with  both  scholars  and 
teachers  in  that  Sunday-school,  and  it  has  done  not  a  little  to  promote  the 
spirit  of  Christian  giving  in  llie  entire  church  and  congregation. 


ITS  A  UXILIA R  1 '  TRA INIXG  A  GENCIES.        29 1 

state.  It  was  by  means  of  the  special  training  which  I 
received  in  that  organization,  and  as  a  result  of  the  reflex 
influence  of  my  activities  in  connection  with  it,  that  my 
personal  opinions  and  habits  in  the  line  of  total  abstinence 
became  fixed  and  abiding,  and  subsequently  proved, 
under  God,  a  means  of  my  preservation  from  utter  ruin; 
and  I  am  confident  that  I  am  only  an  illustration  of 
its  widespread  work,  so  far.  An  expansion  of  the  Cold 
Water  Army  idea  was  later  found  in  what  is  known 
as  the  Band  of  Hope ;  an  organization  which  has  been 
extended  throughout  the  English-speaking  world,  and 
which  now  numbers  millions  in  its  membership,  with  a 
history,  a  literature,  and  a  sphere  of  its  own;  its  purpose 
being  the  promotion  of  total-abstinence  and  other  virtues. 
It  is  in  a  similar  line  of  effort  and  method  of  work  that 
the  Blue  Ribbon  Army,  and  the  White  Ribbon  Army, 
and  the  White  Cross  Army,  and  the  Boys'  Brigade,  and 
many  other  organizations,  have  done  and  are  doing  a 
good  work  in  training  the  young  by  exercising  them  in 
special  lines  of  well-doing. 

A  reviving,  in  the  Church  of  England,  of  the  old  church 
guilds,  for  the  oversight  and  exercise  and  guidance  of 
young  persons  associated  in  them  for  common  effort  in 
a  given  direction,  followed  these  other  popular  practice 
agencies  in  conjunction  with  the  Sunday-school  movement 
of  the  past  century.  In  their  present  form  they  seem 
to  have  had  a  new  beginning  in  England  in  1851  ;^  yet 
they  claim  a  descent  from  the  organizations  of  the  same 
designation   in   the    Middle   Ages   and   earlier.^     From 

1  See  art.  "  Guilds,"  in  Benham's  Dictionary  of  Religion 
'  See  art.  "  Guilds,"  in  Encvc  Brit. 


292  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

England  they  were  brought  to  this  country.  An  Ameri- 
can Episcopal  writer  says  concerning  them:^  "Church 
guilds,  in  the  ages  of  their  fullest  development,  always 
seemed  to  flourish  especially  in  England.  They  are 
therefore  a  part  of  the  traditional  life  of  the  Anglican 
Communion.  And  the  atmosphere  of  American  society 
and  institutions  would  seem  to  be  wonderfully  adapted  to 
perpetuate  this  tradition."  Of  the  purpose  and  value  of 
such  an  agency  this  writer  says :  "  The  object  proposed  in 
these  guilds  is  the  maintenance  of  the  spiritual  life,  fidelity 
to  religious  obligations,  and  deepening  of  devotion.  Boys 
and  girls,  young  men  and  young  women,  are  most  simply 
and  easily  influenced  and  retained  in  attachment  to  the 
church  through  instrumentalities  of  this  sort.  When  the 
period  of  adolescence  is  reached,  it  is  often  found  diffi- 
cult, especially  in  the  case  of  boys,  to  keep  them  true  to 
their  religious  duties.  Here  the  spiritual  guild  comes 
in,  and  through  the  sanctified  power  of  association  sup- 
plies a  very  timely  agency  to  fortify  young  persons 
against  worldly  and  evil  companionships,  and  to  invig- 
orate their  constancy  to  God  and  Holy  Church.  It 
reinforces  moral  courage  at  that  uncertain  age  when  it  is 
most  prone  to  falter.  .  .  .  The  guild  will  put  nerve  and 
sinew  into  Sunday-school  work,  and  standing  ready  will 
take  boys  and  girls,  and  mould  and  shape  them,  as  the 
Sunday-school  from  its  nature  can  hardly  do."  These 
church  guilds  are  now  numerous  and  flourishing  in  the 
American  Episcopal  Church ;  and  they  are  effective  in 
the  line  of  work  for  which  they  are  designed. 

A  mere  enumeration  of  the  various  organizations  which 

1  See  art.  "  Church  Guilds,"  hi  The  Church  Cyclopcedia. 


ITS  AUXILIARY  TRAININiJ  AGENCIES.        293 

have  more  or  less  prominence  as  auxiliary  training  agen- 
cies in  the  work  of  the  Christian  Church  with  and  for  the 
young  would  be  no  slight  task,  even  apart  from  any 
attempt  to  indicate  their  particular  lines  of  effort  severally, 
and  the  main  facts  of  their  origin  and  history.  Included 
in  these  are  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations,  the 
Young  Women's  Christian  Associations,  the  Bible-read- 
ing and  Prayer  Alliances,  the  Bible  Correspondence 
Schools,  the  Chautauqua  Circles,  the  Kitchen  Gardens, 
the  Ministering  Children's  Leagues,  and  Bands  and  Clubs 
for  special  service  in  endless  variety.^  It  is  sufficient,  in 
this  connection,  merely  to  refer  to  their  extended  sweep 
and  scope,  calling  farther  particular  attention  only  to  that 
class  of  organizations  among  them  which  aims  at  bring- 
ing the  young  converts,  or  young  communicants,  in  a 
local  church,  immediately  under  the  oversight  of  their 
pastor,  for  guidance  in  the  duties  and  activities  of  the 
Christian  life. 

In  the  Church  of  England  and  in  the  American  Epis- 
copal Church,  the  Young  Communicants'  Class  has  long 
been  a  favorite  agency  for  the  nurture  and  exercise  of 
young  believers,  under  pastoral  watch  and  guidance.  In 
the  Methodist  churches,  the  class-meeting  system  has 
made  similar  provision  for  probationers  and  young  com- 
municants. In  the  Congregational  and  Presbyterian  and 
Baptist  churches,  the  Young  People's  Prayer  Meeting 
has  been  employed  widely  to  the  same  end.^  There  are 
local  churches  in  New  England  in  which  a  meeting  of 
this  sort  has  been  continued  with  e^ood  results  for  a  half- 


1  See,  in  this  line,  Stall's  Methods  of  Church   Work. 
^  See,  on  this  subject,  Clark's  Youtig  People  s  Prayer  Meetings. 


294  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

century  or  more,  having  under  its  influence  generation 
after  generation  of  young  people. 

In  addition  to  these  more  generally  known  agencies, 
there  have  been  special  agencies  devised  by  particular 
pastors  and  superintendents  to  accomplish  a  similar  work 
in  their  local  sphere.  Thus  Mr.  Henry  P.  Haven,  ot 
New  London,  a  model  superintendent  in  his  wa/,  as 
early  as  1842  formed  what  he  called  a  Religious  Class, 
in  connection  with  a  neighborhood  Sunday-school  super- 
intended by  him.^  Its  object  was  "the  religious  improve- 
ment and  growth  in  grace  of  the  professed  followers  of 
Jesus  in  that  vicinity."  Members  of  the  class  were  ex- 
pected to  attend,  if  possible,  its  every  meeting,  and  "  to 
answer  in  turn  the  questions  of  the  superintendent  on 
religious  subjects,  particularly  respecting  the  state  of 
their  own  hearts."  If  necessarily  absent,  a  member  was 
"to  remember  in  secret  or  silent  prayer  those  who  were 
assembled  together."  Each  member  of  the  class  was  at 
liberty  to  invite  in  any  friends  who  were  seriously  inter- 
ested in  their  personal  religious  state;  with  the  under- 
standing that  these  new  comers  should  be  also  ready  to 
answer  any  questions  propounded  by  the  superintendent 
— who  in  this  case  stood  in  the  place  of  a  pastor,  the 
Sunday-school  being  connected  with  no  local  church. 
This  Religious  Class  was  a  means  of  starting  similar 
classes,  in  a  variety  of  forms,  in  churches  and  Sunday- 
schools  near  and  more  remote. 

Under  the  name  of  the  Boys'  Circle,  and  of  the  Girls' 
Circle,  classes  for  the  fuller  religious  training  of  the  young 
have  been  conducted  by  many  a  pastor,  with  exercises 

1  See  the  Lecturer's  A  Model  Superintendent,  p.  66. 


ITS  A UXIL lARY  TRA INING  A GENCIES.        2<; 5 

calculated  to  develop  the  Christian  activity  of  the  indi- 
vidual members.  There  are,  indeed,  pastors  of  no  mean 
power  as  preachers  who  have  made  more  of  an  impress 
on  the  people  of  their  charge  and  in  the  community  about 
them,  through  their  work  in  such  circles  as  these  in  their 
own  fields,  than  through  all  their  preaching,  for  the  whole 
period  of  their  ministry;  or  than  they  could  have  hoped 
to  make  had  they  been  ten  times  more  eloquent  preachers 
than  they  are.  And  so  far  these  preachers  illustrate  the 
need  and  the  value  of  a  complemental  training  agency, 
to  make  effective  the  best  work  of  the  pulpit  and  of  the 
school  for  the  upbuilding  of  the  young  Christian  believer.^ 

A  remarkable  exhibit  of  the  increasing  sense  of  this 
truth  in  the  community  at  large  is  found  in  the  rapid 
growth  and  extension  of  the  organization  known  as  The 
Young  People's  Society  of  Christian  Endeavor;  started 
in  1 88 1  by  the  Rev.  F.  E.  Clark,  then  of  Portland,  Maine; 
now  of  Boston.^  Its  plan  is  not  unlike  that  of  some  forms 
of  the  church  guild.  Its  object  is  "to  promote  an  earnest 
Christian  life  among  its  members,  to  increase  their  mutual 
acquaintance,  and  to  make  them  more  useful  in  the  ser- 
vice of  God."      From   a   single  local    society  of  sixty 

1  The  Rev.  Dr.  Constans  L.  Goodell,  whose  good  work  as  a  pastor  has 
already  been  referred  to,  says  on  this  subject  (in  How  to  Build  a  Church,  p. 
39  f.) :  "  The  pastor  will  wish  to  have  young  people's  meetings  and  gather- 
ings for  Christian  endeavor  where  workers  may  be  trained  for  special  lines  of 
usefulness,  the  study  of  missions,  the  practice  of  benevolent  giving,  and  the 
art  of  gathering  in  the  straying.  He  will  give  them  printed  matter  to  read. 
He  will  guide  them  to  habits  of  usefulness.  He  will  enlist  every  young  per- 
son's service  in  some  fit  way,  where  a  responsibility  will  develop  the  character 
by  sound  and  healthful  growth.  His  motto  will  be,  'A  work  for  every  boy, 
and  a  boy  for  every  work,'  " 

*  See  Clark's  The  Children  and  the  Church ;  also  his  Young  People's 
Prayer  Afeetings,  pp.  100- 117. 


296  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

members,  this  organization  has,  in  seven  years,  grown  to 
thirty-five  hundred  societies,  and  a  membership  of,  say, 
two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand.  It  has  extended  into 
various  denominations,  and  into  welhiigh  every  state  in 
the  United  States.  It  has  now  its  national  organization; 
and  with  the  true  American  instinct  it  multipHes  its  con- 
ventions, local  and  general,  as  a  means  of  extending  its 
influence  and  of  developing  its  power. 

According  to  the  plans  of  its  founder,  this  organization 
aims  "to  make  religion  child  religion,  a  natural,  rational, 
permanent  part  of  the  child's  life;  to  make  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  to  appear  the  children's  friend,  and  his  ac- 
tive, acknowledged  service  something  to  be  entered  into 
and  enjoyed  by  all  young  persons  as  heartily,  zealously, 
and  constantly  as  their  studies  and  their  games."  It  is 
not  claimed  by  him  that  the  method  he  employs  "  is  the 
only  way,  or  the  best  way,  to  train  young  Christians;" 
but  "  only  that  it  is  one  way  which  has  received  some 
signal  marks  of  the  divine  approval."  As  such  a  means, 
this  organization  has  been  found  effective  by  many  a  wise 
pastor  in  the  work  of  giving  new  interest  and  zest  to  the 
Christian  activity  of  the  young  people  of  his  charge,  and 
of  supplying  them  with  added  practice  in  various  direc- 
tions of  desirable  service.  And  so  far  it  is  eminently 
worthy  of  the  attention  of  pastors  generally.  Nor  is 
there  any  lack  of  literature  to  make  its  details  clear  to 
those  who  would  become  acquainted  with  its  workings. 

It  is  noticeable  that  the  growing  interest  in  plans  and 
methods  for  the  Christian  training  of  children  and  youth, 
under  the  direction  of  the  church,  is  by  no  means  con- 
fined to  any  one  branch  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  but  that 
it  is  showing  itself  on  every  side,  among  thinkers  and 


ITS  A  UXILIAR  1 '  TRAINING  A GENCIES.        297 

workers  of  the  most  diverse  views  in  the  matter  of  reH- 
gious  doctrine  and  of  ecclesiastical  organization.  Within 
the  past  year,  for  example,  a  series  of  suggestive  papers 
on  this  subject  has  appeared  in  successive  numbers  of 
The  Church  Sunday  School  Magazine,  of  London,  from 
the  pen  of  the  Rev.  E.  T.  Vaughan,  an  Honorary  Canon 
of  St.  Albans,  as  representing  the  estimate  of  work  in  this 
line  from  the  standpoint  of  a  Church  of  England  clergy- 
man: and  the  spirit  and  thought  of  these  papers  seem 
much  the  same  as  the  spirit  and  thought  of  an  admirable 
treatise  on  the  same  general  subject,  from  the  standpoint 
of  a  New  England  Congregational  clergyman,  under  the 
title  of  "  The  Culture  of  Child  Piety,"  by  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Amos  S.  Chesebrough,  of  Connecticut;  and  these  two 
works  are  but  illustrations  of  an  extensive  range  of  litera- 
ture in  the  same  direction. 

Says  Canon  Vaughan,  speaking  of  the  comparative 
lack,  in  his  branch  of  the  Church,  of  other  agencies  than 
the  Sunday-school  for  the  Christian  training  of  the  young: 
"  We  must  avail  ourselves  as  largely  as  possible  of  two 
engines  largely  used  by  others,  especially  by  the  Wes- 
leyan  body,  but  hitherto  very  imperfectly  understood  and 
used  by  the  English  Church.  The  first  of  these  is  that 
of  association  for  mutual  support  and  help  in  Christian 
living.  The  other  is  that  of  useful  employment  in  the 
active  service  of  the  Church  of  which  they  are  members." 
In  explanation  and  emphasis  of  his  meaning  in  this  refer- 
ence to  the  twofold  training  to  Christian  living  and  Chris- 
tian working  Canon  Vaughan  adds:  "Those  who  have 
been  confirmed  and  become  communicants  should  at 
once,  if  possible,  be  formed  into  guilds  or  (under  what- 
soever name  and  form)  societies  for  mutual  edification. 


298  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

sympathy,  encouragement.  They  must  not  be  left  iso- 
lated, each  to  fight  his  own  battle  with  temptation,  and 
to  carry  on  his  own  life  of  service  to  the  one  Lord,  by 
himself,  and  with  no  assistance  from  those  similarly  cir- 
cumstanced with  himself.  They  must  be  united  together 
under  some  systematic  guidance,  in  societies  as  simply 
organized,  and  encumbered  with  as  few  rules  and  forms 
as  possible,  and  not  too  large  to  allow  a  strong  sense  of 
mutual  fellowship  in  the  Christian  life  to  grow  up  be- 
tween the  members."  And  in  addition  to  this  association 
for  mutual  help  in  Christian  living,  there  must  be  asso- 
ciation for  help  in  Christian  working.  "The  members 
of  our  societies  for  the  benefit  of  the  younger  members 
of  the  church,"  continues  Canon  Vaughan,  "must  be 
taught  and  accustomed  to  remember  in  practice  that  they 
are  called  as  Christ's  servants  not  merely  to  keep  their 
own  souls,  but  to  be  workers  for  others.  Their  Christian 
life  must  be  a  life  of  active  service  for  the  good  of  the 
body  to  which  they  belong,  and  of  the  world  around 
them.  Definite  church  work  of  some  kind  must,  if 
possible,  be  found  for  them."^ 

Dr.  Chesebrough  has  treated  this  whole  subject  with 
more  of  fullness  of  detail,  and  in  a  more  comprehensive 
view  of  the  principles  involved  in  it.  The  point  at  which 
he  is  in  contact  with  Canon  Vaughan,  and  with  other 
thoughtful  writers  in  the  same  line,  is  where  he  recom- 
mends as  a  hopeful  agency  of  Christian  training  for  the 
young,  "class  instruction  to  bands  or  circles  of  children 
meeting  regularly,  with  a  direct  view  to  their  training  for 
and  in  Christian  discipleship;"^  and  where  he  names,  as 

1  The  Church  Sunday  School  Magazine,  July,  1887,  pp.  550-553. 
2  The  Culture  of  Child  Piety,  p.  171. 


ITS  A  UXIL I  A  R  Y  TRA  JAhXG  A  GENCIES.        299 

one  line  of  instruction  for  such  a  class,  the  showing  a 
young  person  "how  best  to  hve  a  consecrated  Christian 
life,  intelligent,  steadfast,  fruitful,  progressive,"  ^  and  as 
another  line  of  instruction,  the  giving  of  "practical  les- 
sons" in  "the  ministries  of  love  and  Christian  service."^ 

Out  of  his  own  experience  as  a  pastor,  he  says :  "When 
I  stand  in  my  pulpit  and  present,  as  God  gives  me  ability, 
the  gospel  message  to  adult  men  and  women,  I  do  it  in 
the  earnest  hope  that  I  may  win  some  of  them  to  Christ. 
But  I  see  many  in  my  audience  to  whom  this  same  gos- 
pel has  been  faithfully  preached  for  years.  They  are,  it 
may  be,  respectful  listeners,  kind  and  generous  parishion- 
ers, and  excellent  neighbors  and  citizens.  But  they  have 
grown  up  in  unbelief,  and  have  become  more  and  more 
hardened  in  their  unbelief  from  year  to  year.  And  of  these, 
there  are  some  who  sit  as  undisturbed  under  the  most 
moving  appeals  of  the  gospel,  even  in  times  of  revival, 
as  an  impregnable  castle  wall,  defying  all  the  best  aimed 
missiles.  Oh,  at  what  a  terrible  disadvantage  do  I  seek 
to  save  these  parishioners!  The  best  time  to  save  them 
— the  only  time,  perhaps,  in  which  they  could  have  been 
saved — has  gone  by  forever.  To  what  a  fearful  waste  are 
all  efforts  and  all  prayers  in  their  behalf  consigned  at  this 
late  hour!  I  go  now  from  my  pulpit  into  my  children's 
training  class.  What  a  change!  Every  eye  glistens 
with  attention  and  responsive  interest.  The  eager,  hun- 
gry souls  feed  on  the  living  bread.  The  plastic  char- 
acters yield  to  the  moulding  hands  of  truth  and  love. 
And  I  cry  out,  *  Oh !  that  those  men  and  women  who 
have  encased  their  hearts  in  an  adamant  of  a  third  or  a 
half  [of  a]  century  of  unbelief  could  have  been  subjected 

1  The  Culture  of  Child  Piety,  p.  188.  2  Ibid.,  p.  206. 


30O  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

to  a  discreet  and  faithful  Christian  training  in  childhood! 
It  might  not  have  been  with  them  as  it  is  now.'" ^  In 
the  hne  of  this  thought  of  Dr.  Chesebrough,  a  Baptist 
pastor  of  New  Haven  who  told  me,  while  I  was  preparing 
this  very  lecture,  of  a  training  class  of  this  character 
which  he  conducts  on  a  Tuesday  evening,  said  emphati- 
cally, "  My  Tuesday  evening  scholars  are  my  best  Sunday 
morning  hearers."  And  why,  indeed,  should  not  this  be 
so?  Certainly,  it  requires  good  training  to  make  one  a 
good  hearer;  and  the  better  the  preacher,  the  greater 
the  need  of  training,  in  order  to  gain  most  from  his  best 
discourses. 

In  considering  the  twofold  work  of  the  church  prac- 
tice agencies  for  the  young,  as  a  help  in  the  Christian 
training  of  the  young, — the  work  of  training  to  a  right 
Christian  life,  and  the  work  of  training  to  right  Christian 
service, — the  truth  ought  not  to  be  lost  sight  of,  that  in 
both  these  lines  of  training  the  immediate  gain  sought 
after  is  a  gain  to  the  young  person  who  is  under  special 
training,  rather  than  a  gain  to  those  with  whom  he  is 
under  training,  or  to  those  to  whom  he  is  sent  in  a  line 
of  particular  service.  The  main  purpose  of  what  I  have 
spoken  of  as  the  church  gymnasium,  is  obviously  the 
developing  and  directing  of  the  Christian  manhood  of  the 
youth  there  set  at  the  testing  and  practice  of  his  spiritual 
powers;  not  the  ministering  to  those  with  whom  he  may 
be  associated  in  the  course  of  his  careful  training.  And 
just  here  it  is  that  a  misconception  of  the  truth  has  long 
stood  in  the  way  of  the  proper  training  of  young  com- 
municants in  the  Christian  Church. 

The  Rev.  F.  E.  Clark,  who  has  been  so  prominent  in 

'  The  Culture  of  Child  Piety,  p.  33  f. 


ITS  A  UXILIA R  V  TRA INING  A  GENCIES.        30 1 

connection  vvitli  the  Society  of  Christian  Endeavor,  has 
stigmatized  the  idea  of  "  edification  "  as  "  the  prayer-meet- 
ing fetich;"  because  that  idea  has  kept  back  from  a  part 
in  the  prayer-meeting  so  many  who  needed  the  help  of 
participation  in  it,  but  who  were  not  supposed  to  be 
capable  of  such  a  participation  to  the  edifying  of  those 
who  were  present  in  the  prayer-meeting.  Yet  the  Apostle 
recommends  that  "all  things  be  done  unto  edifying;"^ 
and  the  Apostle's  recommendation  ought  not  to  be  dis- 
regarded, although  it  may  be  perverted  by  insisting  that 
it  is  always  the  hearer,  rather  than  the  speaker,  who  is 
to  be  edified  through  one's  speaking.  In  the  Christian 
practice  class  for  young  people,  all  things  should  be  done 
unto  the  edifying  of  those  who  do  them.  If  a  young 
person  in  one  of  those  meetings  raises  his  voice  in  prayer, 
or  in  personal  testimony,  or  in  Bible  recitation,  the  im- 
portant practical  question  is  not,  "  Does  this  tend  to  the 
edifying  of  those  who  hear  him?"  but  it  is,  "Does  this 
tend  to  Jiis  edifying?"  So,  again,  his  giving  and  his 
doing  as  a  means  of  practice  to  him,  in  connection  with 
membership  in  such  a  class,  is  to  be  judged  by  the  stand- 
ard of  its  helpfulness  to  him,  rather  than  by  the  standard 
of  its  immediate  helpfulness  to  others. 

It  is  sometimes  suggested  as  an  objection  to  such  an 
organization  as  the  Young  People's  Society  of  Christian 
Endeavor,  that  no  immediate  practical  benefit  to  others 
is  directly  aimed  at  in  its  activities ;  that,  in  its  exercises, 
its  members  spend  their  strength  for  themselves  rather 
than  for  others.  But  this  objection  would  have  force 
against  all  gymnastic  exercises.  The  pulling  of  chest- 
weights  uses  strength  that  might  be  used  in  pumping 

^  I  Cor.  14 .  26. 


302  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL: 

water.  The  muscle  given  to  a  rowing  machine  might 
run  a  treadmill,  or  saw  firewood.  So,  again,  the  prac- 
tice exercises  of  linguistics  and  mathematics  in  the  col- 
lege class-room  employ  time  and  brain  power  that  would 
suffice  to  keep  a  set  of  bank  books,  or  fill  the  editorial 
columns  of  a  daily  newspaper.  But  without  this  un- 
practical exercising  in  these  physical  and  mental  spheres, 
the  men  who  are  exercised  thereby  would  never  be  fitted 
for  their  best  work  elsewhere. 

Nor  is  this  principle  less  applicable  to  the  moral  than 
to  the  mental  and  physical  spheres.  Exercising  one's 
self  unto  godliness  is  an  important  process  in  the  de- 
velopment of  a  symmetrical  Christian  character — which 
shall  afterwards  manifest  itself  in  good  to  others  also. 
Practicing  in  the  examining  of  the  Bible  for  words  of 
promise,  of  counsel,  and  of  warning;  practicing  in  the 
study  of  particular  mission-fields,  in  order  to  secure  an 
understanding  of  and  an  interest  in  them;  practicing  in 
the  expressing  of  one's  thoughts  concerning  some  theme 
of  religious  interest;  practicing  in  prayer  with  and  for 
others, — the  value  of  all  this  is  primarily  a  subjective 
value,  and  its  immediate  gain  is  to  the  individual  who 
performs  the  part  assigned  to  him;  but  it  is  by  just  such 
practice  as  this  that  a  young  Christian  can  best  be  fitted 
for  an  intelligent  and  efficient  ministry  of  good  to  others, 
by  means  of  Bible  reading,  of  Christian  counsel  and  sym- 
pathy, of  helpful  fervent  prayer,  and  of  participation  in  the 
great  missionary  movements  of  the  Church  of  Christ. 

Yet  it  is  to  be  borne  ever  in  mind  that  practice  as  a 
factor  in  the  training  process  of  Christian  workers  is 
valuable  only  as  it  prepares  for  activity  in  Christian  work 
with  and  for  others ;  hence  this  practice  should  be  kept 


ITS  A  UXILIAR  V  TRAINING  A GENCIES.        303 

within  its  proper  limits,  and  wisely  directed  even  there. 
Just  so  far  as  there  are  openings  for  Christian  service  by 
the  young  people,  in  each  particular  community,  should 
those  openings  be  pointed  out  as  avenues  of  usefulness  for 
the  young  people  who  can  enter  them.  Visiting  the  poor, 
carrying  flowers  to  the  sick,  looking  up  new  scholars  for 
the  Sunday-school,  distributing  religious  reading,  having 
a  part  in  a  sewing-school,  or  in  a  kitchen-garden,  sharing 
in  the  missionary  movements  of  the  local  church,  and 
many  another  mode  of  well-doing,  will  be  among  the 
ways  which  thus  present  themselves.  And  it  is  impor- 
tant that  those  who  are  trained  for  work  be,  as  soon  as  is 
practicable,  set  at  the  work  for  which  they  are  trained. 

Like  every  other  department  of  work  in  the  local 
church,  every  guild,  or  band,  or  society,  or  circle,  which 
is  an  approved  auxiliary  agency  of  the  church-school  for 
the  practice  and  exercise  and  drill  of  the  children  and 
youth  of  the  church  and  congregation  in  the  direction  of 
their  wise  training,  ought  to  be  under  the  oversight  and 
the  general  control  of  the  pastor  of  the  local  church,  in 
all  its  plans  and  methods  of  activity.  And  just  here  there 
are  two  extremes  to  be  guarded  against.  On  the  one 
hand,  the  pastor  ought  not  to  hinder  the  fullest  and  freest 
development  of  the  personal  power  of  his  young  people, 
by  any  undue  checking,  or  restraining,  or  overshadowing 
of  them  in  their  proper  activities  within  the  scope  and 
field  of  such  legitimate  associations.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  pastor  ought  to  see  to  it  that  no  other  overseer  or 
director  than  himself,  outside  of  these  local  associations, 
is  given  the  place  which  is  properly  his  own,  as  the  head 
of  the  local  church,  in  watching  and  guidino-  the  church 
training  of  his  young  people. 


304  THE  SUN  DA  V-  SCHO  OL  : 

Although  the  pastor  is  over  all  these  associations  of 
his  young  people,  his  best  work  in  and  through  them  all 
is  obviously  by  means  of  the  wisely  fostered  and  the 
wisely  directed  activities  of  their  members  severally,  not 
by  his  own  activity  as  their  chiefest  member.  In  this 
matter,  it  is  for  the  pastor  to  show  his  young  people  what 
tJiey  can  do  ;  not  for  the  pastor  to  show  his  young  people 
what  he  can  do.  His  power  is  to  be  evidenced  by  their 
evidencing  their  power — under  his  direction.  His  im- 
portance is  to  be  realized,  in  his  bringing  them  to  realize 
their  importance — as  his  co-workers.  In  the  pulpit,  the 
pastor  has  all  the  work  to  do.  In  the  Sunday-school, 
the  pastor  has  a  portion  of  the  work  to  do,  while  the 
teachers  and  the  scholars  have  a  larger  portion  of  the 
work  to  do.  In  the  church  gymnasium,  the  young 
people  have  all  the  work  to  do,  while  the  pastor  has  the 
responsibility  of  seeing  that  they  do  the  work  they  ought 
to  do  in  the  way  they  ought  to  do  it. 

While,  however,  the  members  of  a  young  people's 
association  of  any  local  church  ought  to  be  free  from  the 
hindering,  or  the  cramping,  of  any  unnecessary  pastoral 
constraint,  they  ought  to  be  guarded  quite  as  carefully 
against  a  feeling  of  any  responsibility  to  an  organization 
outside  of  their  own  church ;  or  of  any  dependence  on  a 
guide  or  overseer  beyond  themselves,  other  than  their 
pastor.  A  peculiarity,  and  an  advantage,  of  the  Ameri- 
can Sunday-school  system,  is,  that  the  Sunday-school  of 
a  local  church  in  America  is  looked  upon  as  a  depart- 
ment of  that  local  church,  having  no  dependence  upon, 
and  no  organic  connection  with,  a  Sunday-school  of  any 
other  church.  Hereby  the  American  Sunday-school  is 
made  to  appear  more  distinctively  and  exclusively  a  por- 


ITS  AUXILIARY  TRAINING  AGENCIES.        305 

tion  of  the  local  church  organization — a  sharer  in  the 
very  life  of  that  organization — than  is  the  average  Eng- 
lish Sunday-school.*  There  is  no  more  reason  why  the 
young  people's  association  of  a  local  church  should  be 
in  immediate  connection  with,  or  should  make  its  reports 
to,  or  should  look  for  directions  or  suggestions  from,  a 
county,  or  a  state,  or  a  national  organization  of  young 
people's  associations,  than  there  is  why  the  Sunday- 
school,  or  indeed  the  prayer-meeting,  of  that  church 
should  be  in  like  relations  with  an  outside  organization 
of  Sunday-schools  or  of  prayer-meetings. 

It  is  quite  proper  that  those  who  are  interested  in  Sun- 
day-school work,  or  in  prayer-meeting  work,  or  in  the 
work  of  young  people's  associations,  as  such,  should 
come  together  in  conference,  or  in  convention,  for  the 
purpose  of  counseling  and  quickening  one  another  in  the 
line  of  their  common  endeavors.  It  may  even  be  well 
for  individuals  to  associate  themselves  in  an  organization 
for  the  purpose  of  sending  out  and  of  sustaining  experts 
in  any  such  line  of  work,  in  order  to  the  extension  and 
improvement  of  work  of  that  sort;  but  all  this  should  be 
wholly  apart  from  any  combining  or  overseeing  of  the 
Sunday-schools,  or  the  prayer-meetings,  or  the  young 
people's  associations,  which  are  established  in  connection 


^  The  London  Sunday-school  Union  is  a  union  of  Sunday-schools.  The 
American  Sunday  School  Union  is  an  association  of  individuals  for  the  pro- 
motion of  Sunday-school  interests.  In  the  former  case,  the  local  Sunday- 
schools  retain  their  connection  with  the  national  society.  In  the  latter  case, 
the  local  Sunday-schools  ^'ave  no  immediate  connection  with  the  national 
society.  The  difference  in  these  two  systems  was  discussed  quite  fully  be- 
tween Secretary  Hartley,  of  the  London  Sunday-school  Union,  and  the  Lec- 
turer, in  The  Sunday  School  Times,  for  December  6,  1873,  April  25,  1874,  and 
May  9,  1874. 

20 


306  THE  SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 

with  local  churches.  The  pastor  of  a  local  church  is  the 
head,  under  Christ,  of  all  the  departments  of  Christian 
work  in  the  field  of  his  charge ;  and  he  should  guard 
jealously  the  oversight  of  his  pulpit,  of  his  Sunday-school, 
and  of  the  various  practice  agencies  which  are  co-working 
with  the  pulpit  and  the  Sunday-school  for  the  training  of 
the  children  and  of  the  child-like  of  his  pastorship. 

The  Church  of  Christ  is  the  body  of  Christ.  In  this 
body  there  arc  \arious  members.  The  pulpit  is  as  the 
head,  by  means  of  which  the  truth  is  perceived  for,  and 
is  indicated  to,  the  other  members.  The  Sunday-school 
is  as  the  hands,  by  means  of  which  the  truth  thus  made 
known  is  laid  hold  of,  and  is  made  a  permanent  posses- 
sion, for  the  benefit  of  the  other  members.  The  auxiliary 
practice  agencies  are  the  feet,  by  means  of  which  the 
other  members  are  started  in  the  path  of  dut)-,  according 
to  the  truth  which  the  head  discloses,  and  which  the 
hands  lay  hold  on.  The  head  cannot  say  to  the  hands, 
I  hav'e  no  need  of  you;  nor  again  the  head  to  the  feet,  I 
have  no  need  of  you.  Nay,  much  rather,  those  members 
of  the  body  which  we  have  thought  to  be  less  honorable, 
upon  these  we  ought  to  bestow  more  abundant  honor ; 
for  all  these  are  of  the  body  of  Christ,  and  severally 
members  thereof  And  while  in  and  through  these 
members  there  are  diversities  of  ministrations,  there  is 
the  same  Lord;  while  there  arc  diversities  of  workings, 
it  is  the  same  God  who  worketh  all  things  in  all.- 


LECTURE   IX. 


PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN:    ITS  IMPORTANCE 
AND  ITS  DIFFICULTIES. 


IX. 

PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN:     ITS  IMPORTANCE 
AND  ITS  DIFFICULTIES. 

Threefold  Meaning  of  the  Term  "  Preaching." — Preaching  Possible 
in  the  Sunday-school  Class. — Gain  to  Children  from  Pulpit 
Sermonizing. — Danger  of  their  Neglect  by  the  Preacher. — Im- 
pressibility of  Children. — The  Children's  Crusade. — Separate 
Services  for  Children. — Five-Minute  Sermons.  Antiquity  of 
this  Plan. — Modern  Preachers  to  Children. — Preaching  to  Chil- 
dren not  an  Easy  Matter. —  Its  Influence  on  the  Preacher. — 
Stimulus  to  Success  in  the  Fact  of  the  Difficulties. 

"  Preaching"  is  a  term  employed  in  our  English  Bible 
in  three  distinct  senses ;  the  same  word  being  given  as 
the  translation  of  at  least  three  Greek  words  with  clearly 
different  meanings.  Kcnisso^  is  to  herald  the  message 
of  one  who  has  authority — whether  the  message  be  wel- 
come or  unwelcome,  a  message  of  good  or  a  message  of 
ill.     Euanggdizo  ^  is  to  proclaim  good  tidings ;   to  an- 

1  See  Thayer's  Greek-Eng.  Lex.,  s.  v.  Comp.  Matt.  3  :  1-3;  10:  7,  27; 
Mark  1:4,  7 ;  3  :  14 ;  Luke  3:3,4;  Acts  8:5;  9  :  20 ;  10  :  42  ;  15  :  21  ;  19  : 
13  ;  Rom.  10:  15 ;  i  Cor.  i :  23,  24;  2  Cor.  4 :  5  ;  11:4;  i  Tim.  2 :  7  (see 
R.  V.  marg.) ;  2  Tim.  i :  11  (see  R.  V.  marg.).  Comp.,  also,  Gen.  41 :  43; 
Dan.  3  :  4,  in  LXX. 

*  See  Thayer's  Greek-Eng.  Lex.,  s.  v.  Comp.  Matt.  11  :  S  ;  Luke  3:  18 
(R.  v.);  4:  18;  4:43  (R.  v.);  7  :  22 ;  16:  16  (R.  V.);  Acts  10:  36  (R.  V.); 
14:  15  (R.  V.) ;  16:  10  ;  Rom.  10:  15  ;  I  Cor.  15  :  i  ;  2  Cor.  11:7;  Gal.  i :  8, 
II ;  Eph.  2  :  17  ;  3  :  8  ;  Heb.  4  :  2,  6  (R.  V.) ;  i  Peter  i :  12,  25  (R.V.).  Comp., 

309 


310  PREACHING   TO  CHILDREN: 

nounce  a  truth  which  should  bring  gladness  to  its  hearer. 
Kata>iggclld^  is  primarily  to  treat  a  subject  thoroughly, 
to  make  clear  a  truth;  or,  as  the  Revisers  have  indicated, 
in  their  rendering  of  this  term  by  "proclaim,"  it  is  to 
make  known  that  which  is  in  itself  worth  knowing.^ 

As  applied  to  religious  truth,  the  first  of  these  words 
finds  its  emphasis  in  the  sender  of  the  message;  the  sec- 
ond finds  its  emphasis  in  the  receivers  of  the  message ; 
the  third  finds  its  emphasis  in  the  substance  of  the  mes- 
sage. In  the  first  case,  the  preacher  realizes  for  whom 
he  stands ;  in  the  second,  to  zvliom  he  is  sent ;  in  the 
third,  the  importance  of  the  truth  which  he  is  set  to  de- 
clare. This  is  the  threefold  Bible  view  of  preaching.  In 
our  modern  popular  phrasing,  "  preaching "  practically 
includes  all  three  of  these  ideas,  with  a  compression,  or  a 
limitation,  of  their  scope  to  the  pulpit  declarations  of  reli- 
gious truth;  or,  as  Webster  defines  it,  "preaching"  is  "to 
utter  in  a  sermon,  or  a  formal  religious  harangue."  It  is 
in  the  modern  and  popular  sense  of  the  term,  rather  than 
in  any  one  of  its  biblical  senses,  that  I  now  speak  of 
preaching;  as  I  call  attention  to  the  importance  and  the 
difficulties,  and  again  to  the  principles  and  the  methods, 
of  preaching  to  children. 

It  is  true  that  all  three  of  the  phases  of  preaching 
which  are  presented  in  the  Bible  words  translated  by  that 
term  can  be — and  practically  they  often  are — secured  in 
and  through  the  Sunday-school,  as  the  divinely  com- 

also,  I  Sam.  31:9;  2  Sam.  1:9;  Psa.  40 :  10  (39  :  10)  ;  96 :  2  {95 :  2) ;  Isa. 
40:  9,  in  LXX. 

1  See  Thayer's  Greek-Eng.  Lex.,  s.  v.    Coriip.  Acts  4:2;  13  :  5  ;  ^T-  10-13  ; 
I  Cor.  9  :  14;  Phil,  i :  15-18  ;  Col.  i  :  24-28. 

2  See  Crabb's  English  Synonymcs,  s.  v.  "  Declare." 


ITS  IMPOR  TANCE.  3  1 1 

mandecl  agency  for  the  ministry  of  the  church  to  children 
and  to  the  child-Hkc;  apart  from  the  later  developed  and 
the  not  distinctively  enjoined  agency  of  pulpit  sermon- 
izing. But  it  is  also  true  that  pulpit  sermonizing  has  its 
abundant  justification  in  the  needs  of  the  human  mind, 
and  in  the  intimations  and  the  illustrations  of  the  Bible 
narrative ;  and  it  will  not  be  questioned  that  pulpit  ser- 
monizing— preaching  in  its  modern  popular  signification 
— has  been,  and  is,  and  in  the  nature  of  things  must  con- 
tinue to  be,  a  pre-eminent  agency  for  the  heralding  of 
God's  truth,  for  the  declaring  of  the  good  tidings  of  sal- 
vation, and  for  the  intelligent  and  discriminating  exhibit 
of  themes  of  eternal  moment.  Hence  it  is  unmistakably 
needful  that  the  advantages  of  pulpit  sermonizing  be 
secured  to  the  most  important,  to  the  most  impressible, 
and  to  the  most  hopeful,  class  of  hearers ;  and  who  will 
say  that  that  class  does  not  include — if,  indeed,  it  be  not 
wholly  composed  of — the  children  ? 

He  who  is  a  teacher  in  the  Sunday-school  can  be,  as  I 
have  said,  a  herald  preacher  to  his  scholars,  giving  them 
God's  message  as  from  God ;  he  can  be  a  gospel  preacher 
to  those  scholars,  declaring  to  them  the  good  news  of 
a  Saviour  who  died  and  who  lives  for  them  ;  he  can  be  a 
disclosing,  a  proclaiming,  or  an  enlightening,  preacher,  in 
his  conferences  with  those  scholars  over  the  truths  he 
would  bring  to  their  understanding  and  attention.  The 
true  teacher  is  all  this.  As  Richard  Baxter  says  on  this 
point:  "I  hope  there  is  none  so  silly  as  to  think  this 
[personal]  conference  [as  between  teacher  and  pupil]  is 
not  preaching.  What,  doth  the  number  we  speak  to 
make  it  preaching?  Or  doth  interlocution  make  it  none? 
Surely,  a  man  may  as  truly  preach  to  one  as  to  a  thou- 


312  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

sand."^  But  in  addition  to  all  the  preaching  thus  done 
by  the  teacher  in  the  Sunday-school,  there  is  a  preaching 
work  to  be  done  by  the  pastor  in  and  from  the  pulpit,  in 
announcing  and  impressing  and  enforcing  the  truths  of 
God's  word,  by  means  of  that  form  of  continuous  dis- 
course, which  came  after  a  season  to  take  the  place  of 
the  earlier  form  of  homily,  or  conference,  or  conversa- 
tion, which  was  the  chief  method  of  preaching  in  the  first 
two  centuries  of  our  Christian  era.^ 

As  a  rule,  however,  pulpit  preaching  is  not  addressed 
to  children  as  children ;  nor  are  children  included  in  the 
number  of  those  to  whom  it  is  supposed,  or  designed,  to 
be  intelligible.  Children  are  indeed  expected  to  attend 
the  church  services  where  preaching  is  a  prominent  fea- 
ture, and  where  it  is  even  counted  a  means  of  grace;  but 
the  pulpit  preacher  does  not,  ordinarily,  recognize,  as  a 
corollary  of  this  expectation,  his  corresponding  duty  to 
adapt  his  preaching  to  the  capacities  and  needs  of  his 
children  hearers.  Claiming,  to  start  with,  that  God's  ap- 
pointed agency  for  the  winning  and  training  of  souls  is 
pulpit  preaching  rather  than  Bible-school  teaching,  and 
that  therefore  children  ought  to  attend  on  that  appointed 
agency,  the  modern  church  practically  deprives  those 
children  who  do  thus  attend,  of  the  chief  advantage  of 
that  agency,  by  couching  the  addresses  of  the  pulpit  in 
language  which  is  to  the  children  an  unknown  tongue.^ 

1  "  The  Reformed  Pastor,"  in  Practical  Works,  XIV.,  246-354. 

*  See  Broadus's  Lectures  on  the  History  of  Preaching',  p.  46  ;  also  Smith's 
Diet,  of  Christiaii  Antiq.,  art.  "  Homily  ;  "  also  pp.  53-56,  ante. 

3  It  is  a  very  common  thing  to  hear  a  Christian  minister  say,  that  if  a  child 
must  choose  between  attending  church  or  attending  Sunday-school,  he  ought 
to  attend  church  and  let  the  Sunday-school  go  ;  when  the  practical  meaning 


ITS  IMPOR  TA  NCE.  3  I  3 

It  would,  to  be  sure,  be  practicable  to  have  the  words 
of  the  preacher  such  as  children  and  adults  could  together 
understand  and  profit  by;  but  that  would  necessitate  the 
bringing  down  those  words  to  the  comprehension  of  the 
children,  as  the  common  plane  of  intelligence  for  all;  and 
t/iat  is  the  very  opposite  of  ordinary  pulpit  practice.  The 
emphatic  and  specific  declaration  of  our  Lord  to  adults 
was  :  "  Except  yc  turn  [not  be  converted,  as  our  old  version 
mis-rendered  it,  but  tur?i\  and  become  as  little  children, 
ye  shall  in  no  wise  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven;"^ 
and,  "Whosoever  shall  not  receive  the  kingdom  of  God 
as  a  little  child,  he  shall  in  no  wise  enter  therein."^  The 
seeming  rendering  of  these  words,  as  applied  to  children, 
by  the  modern  pulpit,  is :  "  Except  ye  push  on  and  be- 
come as  grown  folks,  ye  shall  in  no  wise  share  in  the 
lessons  about  the  kingdom. of  heaven  ; "  and  "  Whosoever 
cannot  understand  the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  full-grown 
person,  he  shall  in  no  wise  partake  of  its  privileges."  Is 
it  too  much  to  say  that  this  suggests  a  new  application 
of  those  other  words  of  our  Lord  to  religious  teachers  ; 
"  Ye  have  [so  far]  made  void  the  word  of  God  because 
of  your  tradition"?* 

There  is  even  good  ground  for  questioning  the  wisdom 
of  an  enforced,  or  a  voluntary,  habitual  regular  attend- 
ance of  children  upon  religious  services  which  are  not 

of  that  minister  is,  that  if  a  child  must  choose  between  attending  on  services 
which  are  beyond  his  intelligence,  or  attending  on  services  which  are  adapted 
to  his  intelligence,  he  ought  to  choose  the  former,  in  spite  of  the  unreason- 
ableness of  a  course  like  this.  Such  a  minister,  whoever  he  may  be,  makes 
the  twofold  mistake  of  supposing  that  modern  pulpit  sermonizing  is  one  of 
God's  ordained  agencies  for  the  religious  training  of  the  young,  and  that 
interlocutory  Bible  teaching  is  not.  1  Matt.  18  :  3. 

*  Mark  10 :  15  ;  Luke  18  :  17.  '  Matt.  15  :  6  ;  Mark  7  :  13. 


314  PREACHING    TO  CHILDREN: 

designed  for  the  comprehension  and  the  participation  of 
children.  Said  President  Barnas  Sears,  on  one  occasion, 
in  my  hearing:  "I  am  by  no  means  sure  of  the  good 
effect,  on  children,  of  sitting  in  listlessness,  and  acquiring 
habits  of  inattention  in  the  house  of  God,  when  nothing 
is  offered  them  from  the  pulpit,  and  they  are  not  expected 
to  understand,  or  to  have  a  part  in,  the  exercises  of  wor- 
ship." ^  And  this  is  a  doubt  which  has  also  been  in  the 
mind  of  many  another  thoughtful  educator. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  H.  Gallaudet,  who  was  an  ex- 
ceptionally intelligent  student  of  the  child  mind,  would 
not  consent  to  train  his  children  to  mental  inattention,  by 
having  them  sit,  in  their  younger  years,  without  occupa- 
tion, through  long  services  which  were  obviously  above 
their  understanding.  He  allowed  them  to  take  seats  on 
the  crickets,  or  footstools,  in  the  family  pew  at  church; 
there  to  read  their  Bibles  or  their  Sunday-school  books, 
while  the  service  went  on ;  and,  as  occasion  offered,  he 
would  call  them  up  to  listen  to  the  singing,  or  to  a  portion 
of  Bible  reading,  or  to  some  statement  or  illustration  in  the 
preacher's  discourse,  which  was  within  the  scope  of  their 
comprehension.  In  this  way,  all  of  Dr.  Gallaudet's  chil- 
dren were  guarded  from  habits  of  wearisome  listlessness 
in  church,  and  ultimately  became  intelligent  sharers  in 
the  forms  and  spirit  of  sanctuary  services.  On  the  other 
hand,  there  is  reason  for  believing  that  the  old-time  co- 
partnership of  the  preacher  and  the  tithing-man,  in  the 
work  of  making  the  Lord's  house  a  place  of  undeserved 
penance  to  children,  huddled  together  in  the  galleries  as 
they  were,  was  an  important  factor  in  diminishing  the 

1  In  an  address  at  Newport,  heard  by  the  Lecturer. 


IJS  IMPORTANCE.  315 

interest  of  successive  generations  in  the  services  of  that 
house, — as  \\c  know  was  the  case  prior  to  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  Sunday-school/ 

While,  however,  it  would  be  better,  if  the  choice  must 
be  made,  to  have  children  attend  the  Sunday-school  and 
be  faithfully  cared  for  there,  without  attending  on  those 
pulpit  ministrations  which  are  specifically  not  designed 
for  their  benefit,  than  to  have  them  attend  on  such  pulpit 
ministrations  without  having  the  aid  of  intelligent  Sunday- 
school  instruction;^  yet,  obviously,  a  better  way  still  is  for 
children  to  have  the  incalculable  advantage  of  pulpit  min- 
istrations suited  to  their  capacity  and  needs,  in  addition 
to  all  that  could  be  secured  to  them  by  the  best  Sunday- 
school  training  imaginable.  And  just  this  better  way  it 
is  to  which  I  am  now  calling  attention. 

The  importance  of  preaching  to  children  pivots  on  the 
relative  numbers  and  impressibility  of  children  in  com- 
parison with  adults,  in  the  community  at  large,  and  on 
the  place  assigned  to  them,  as  the  charge  of  his  disciples, 
by  our  Lord.  Because  childhood  is  pre-eminently  the 
season  for  an  intelligent  choice  of  a  lifetime  course  of 
good  or  of  evil,  and  because  children,  far  more  than 
adults,  are  open  to  impressions  and  influences  of  an 
abiding  nature,  therefore  the  herald  of  God's  word,  the 
bearer  of  the  gospel  message,  the  exponent  of  all-impor- 
tant religious  truths,  has  a  duty  to  address  himself  directly 
to  children,  as  the  most  numerous  and  the  most  hopeful 

*  See  note  at  p.  174,  ante. 

2  The  Jews  held  that  the  place  of  study  was  superior  to  the  place  of  wor- 
ship ;  and  that  while  a  synagogue  might  be  turned  into  a  school,  a  school 
must  not  be  given  up  for  a  synagogue.  (See  Yad  Ha-chazaqa,  Part  I.,  §  3; 
also  Addenda  to  Shulchan  Arukh.j 


3l6  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

class  of  persons  in  the  field  of  his  labors ;  the  more  espe- 
cially because  He  in  whose  name  the  preacher  stands 
has  given  such  emphasis  to  the  sin  and  the  peril  of  de- 
spising the  little  ones,  or  of  being  the  means  of  their 
stumbling  in,  or  of  their  turning  from,  the  path  of  right. 

On  what  plea,  indeed,  can  a  preacher  justify  himself  in 
addressing  his  words  of  invitation  and  counsel  chiefly  to 
the  comparatively  hopeless  minority  of  comparatively  un- 
impressible  adults,  to  the  neglect  of  an  obviously  more 
hopeful  majority  of  unquestionably  impressible  children, 
when  both  these  classes  are  within  his  reach?  By  what 
right  does  he  locate  his  evangelizing  pulpit  hard  by  the 
very  gate  of  perdition,  to  enable  him  to  cry  out  to  a  few 
of  those  who  are  hurrying  toward  that  dark  portal  under 
the  accelerating  impulse  of  their  long  years  of  sinful  de- 
scending, while  he  leav^es  unwarned  and  unguided  the 
great  masses  of  children  who  are  yet  far  up  the  road  at 
the  foot  of  which  he  is  stationed,  but  who  are  in  danger 
of  the  very  perils  against  which  he  is  uttering  his  warn- 
ing cry  to  the  remnant  of  their  parents'  generation?  If, 
indeed,  he  were  to  say  that  our  Lord  taught  that  those 
who  enter  his  service  at  the  eleventh  hour  are  to  be  wel- 
comed as  cordially  as  if  they  came  earlier,  it  would  be 
well  for  him  to  be  reminded  that  the  householder,  in  the 
parable,  "  went  out  early  in  the  morning  to  hire  laborers 
into  his  vineyard,"^  and  that  it  was  only  after  those  whom 
he  secured  at  that  time  had  been  ten  hours  at  their  work, 
that  he  gave  his  invitation  to  those  who  had  been  idlers 
until  then.  There  is  nothing  in  the  Bible,  in  history,  or 
in  sound  reason,  that  will  justify  a  man  of  God  in  waiting 

1  Matt.  20:  1-7. 


ITS  IMPOR  TANCE.  3 1 7 

until  the  mid-life  of  his  hearers  before  he  makes  his  direct 
call  on  them  to  enter  the  service  of  Him  whom  he  repre- 
sents. Nor  is  there  any  such  justification  for  his  delay 
in  [giving  needful  Christian  counsel  to  those  who  already 
arc  in  his  Master's  service.  Whether  looked  upon  as  out 
of  Christ  or  as  in  Christ,  a  child  has  a  stronger  claim  than 
an  adult  on  the  preaching  service  of  a  minister  of  Christ, 
when  the  two  are  brought  into  practical  comparison. 

Incidental  proof  of  the  importance  of  preaching  to 
children  is  found  in  the  illustrations  of  its  effectiveness  on 
memorable  occasions — whether  the  preaching  on  those 
occasions  was  wisely  or  unwisely  directed.  Look,  for 
example,  at  that  wonderful  uprising  of  the  children  for 
the  rescue  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  from  the  followers  of 
the  False  Prophet,  in  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  cen- 
tury !  It  was  after  five  crusades,  under  the  lead  of  kings 
and  knights,  had  proved  a  failure,  that  a  Christian  youth 
in  France  was  moved  to  follow  in  the  steps  of  Peter  the 
Hermit  and  of  St.  Bernard,  as  a  preacher  of  a  crusade ; 
but  he  to  the  children,  instead  of,  as  they,  to  adults.  And 
this  young  Stephen  of  Cloyes,  with  the  co-work  of  young 
Nicholas  of  Cologne,  and  of  Peter  of  Burgundy,  and 
others,  appealed  to  the  children  to  come  forward  and 
"  win  a  victory  which  soldiers  and  nobles  had  failed  to 
gain."  The  text  of  these  preachers  was  the  startlingly 
significant  words  of  David,  as  interpreted  by  David's 
greater  Son  :  "Out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  and  sucklings 
hast  thou  ordained  strength  because  of  thine  enemies, 
that  thou  mightest  still  the  enemy  and  the  avenger."^ 
Under  this  appeal  children,  by  the  thousand,  left  their 

1  Comp.  Psa.  8:2;  Matt.  21  :  i5. 


3l8  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

homes  and  enlisted  for  the  crusade.  They  were  from 
eight  years  old  and  upward.  The  efforts  of  parents  and 
of  the  civil  authorities  were  powerless  against  the  influ- 
ence of  the  preachers  who  had  the  children's  ear. 

Fifty  thousand  or  more  of  these  children  set  out  from 
their  homes  in  southern  and  central  Europe.  Some  thirty 
thousand  of  them  perished  in,  or  fell  from,  the  way.  The 
ie.\v  thousands  who  finally  reached  the  East  were  betrayed 
and  sold  into  slavery  by  those  who  had  professed  to  be 
their  friends  and  guides.^  This  incident  in  mediaeval 
story  it  is  of  which  Longfellow  sings  in  wondering  praise : 

"  What  is  this  I  read  in  history, 
Full  of  marvel,  full  of  mystery, 
Difficult  to  understand  ? 
Is  it  fiction  ?  is  it  truth  ? 
Children  in  the  flower  of  youth, 
Heart  in  heart,  and  hand  in  hand. 
Ignorant  of  what  helps  or  harms, 
Without  armor,  without  arms. 
Journeying  to  the  Holy  Land ! 

"  Who  shall  answer  or  divine  ? 
Never  since  the  world  was  made 
Such  a  wonderful  crusade 
Started  forth  for  Palestine. 

"  Like  a  shower  of  blossoms  blown 
From  the  parent  trees  were  they  ; 
Like  a  flock  of  birds  that  fly 
Through  the  unfrequented  sky. 
Holding  nothing  as  their  own. 
Passed  they  into  lands  unknown, 
Passed  to  suffer  and  to  die. 

1  See  Michaud's /I'i.r^;-)'  of  the  Crusades,  II.,  202;  III.,  441-446;  Mills's 
History  of  the  Crusades,  note  at  p.  245,  Note  Gg,  p.  272;  Lea's  History  of 
the  Inquisition,  I.,  147  f. ;  Gray's  The  Children  s  Crusade,  Ytas^m. 


ITS  IMPOR  TANCE.  3  1 9 

"  O  the  simple,  child-like  trust! 
O  the  faith  that  could  believe 
What  the  harnessed,  iron-mailed 
Knights  of  Christendom  had  failed 
I5y  their  prowess  to  achieve. 
They,  the  children,  could  and  must!"' 

Nor  can  we  say  that  these  children,  thus  marvelously 
swayed  by  the  power  of  the  living  preacher,  were  not 
moved  in  the  innermost  depths  of  their  spiritual  being 
by  the  influences  which  impelled  them  to  their  acts  of 
heroic — even  though  most  unwise — daring  and  doing. 
The  record  stands  that  when  a  number  of  these  child 
crusaders  were  captives  in  Bagdad,  an  attempt  was  made, 
under  the  direction  of  a  council  of  Saracen  princes,  to 
win  them  to  the  creed  of  the  False  Prophet.  On  the 
one  hand,  they  were  tempted  with  rewards  if  they  would 
yield;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  they  were  threatened  with 
torture  and  with  death  if  they  remained  firm.  And  of 
the  entire  number  thus  brought  to  the  test,  not  one  failed 
or  faltered,  even  in  the  face  of  the  cruel  martyrdom  to 
which  eighteen  of  them  were  successively  subjected  in 
the  presence  of  the  others.^  All  were  as  true  to  their  God 
as  were  the  young  Hebrew  captives  in  the  same  region 
of  the  world  in  the  days  of  Nebuchadnezzar.^  And  who 
will  doubt  that  the  fidelity  of  these,  as  of  those,  was  the 
firmer  because  they  had  been  brought  into  the  service  of 
their  divine  Master  in  the  early  morning  of  their  days,  in- 
stead of  being  left  uncared  for  until  their  life's  noonday? 

In  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century,  there  were 

i"The   Children's  Crusade  (A   Fragment),"  m  Poems  (Household  Edi- 
tion), p.  406. 

"^  Gray's  Children's  Crusade,  pp.  203-206.  ^  Dan.  3  :  1-30. 


320  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

wonderful  revivals  of  religion  among  children  in  Ger- 
many, under  the  preaching  of  Count  Zinzendorf  and  his 
fellow  Moravian  preachers.^  Nothing  in  the  work  of  John 
Wesley  seemed  to  be  more  of  a  surprise  to  him  than  the 
effect  of  his  preaching  on  those  children  who  heard  him; 
and  because  of  what  he  saw  was  the  influence  on  them 
of  sermons  not  directly  designed  for  their  benefit,  he  was 
led  to  prepare  sermons  suited  to  their  tastes  and  under- 
standing.^ Jonathan  Edwards  bore  testimony  to  the  re- 
markable results  of  pulpit  preaching  on  the  children  of 
New  England  in  the  great  revival  of  a  hundred  and  fifty 
years  ago.^  So,  again,  in  our  day,  many  a  conservative 
clergyman  in  England,  Scotland,  and  America,  has  been 
brought  to  realize  anew  the  power  of  preaching  to  chil- 
dren by  witnessing  the  unmistakably  good  results  of 
sermons  to  children  by  special  evangelists,  whose  style 
and  methods  of  working  could  not  have  the  approval  of 
those  clergymen.*  And  so  a  sense  of  the  importance  of 
this  ministry  to  the  little  ones  has  been  growing  in  the 
minds  of  thoughtful  observers  of  the  means  and  agencies 
of  promoting  God's  work  in  the  world. 

One  of  the  foremost  difficulties  in  the  way  of  securing 
fitting  and  timely  preaching  to  children  in  these  later 
days  is  encountered  in  the  question  of  when  and  where 
and  how  this  preaching  should  be  conducted.  And  this 
question  is  differently  answered  in  different  communities, 
according  to  the  preference  of  different  pastors. 

1  See  note  i,  at  p.  io6,  ante.  *  See  pp.  106-108,  ante. 

s  See  Edwards's  reports  of  this  revival  in  Prince's  Christian  History  for  1743, 
pp.  115-128. 

-  The  "  Children's  Special  Service  Mission,"  of  London,  grew  out  of  the 
interest  excited  by  the  evangelistic  services  for  children,  conducted  by  the 


ITS  DIFFICUL  TIES.  3  2 1 

A  plan  which  has  had  large  prominence  in  England, 
and  which  is  not  without  its  illustrations  in  America, 
is  that  of  a  separate  service  of  worship  and  of  preaching 
for  the  children  on  the  Lord's  Day,  either  at  the  same 
hour  with  the  general  service  for  adults  or  at  a  later 
hour  in  the  day.  In  many  cases,  in  England,  where  the 
Sunday-school  session  precedes  the  ordinary  forenoon 
church  service,  the  children  from  the  Sunday-school 
assemble  in  a  room  by  themselves,  at  the  hour  when  the 
larger  congregation  gathers  in  the  main  auditorium  of  the 
church,  and  are  there  led  in  a  service  of  worship  adapted 
to  their  comprehension  and  needs;  that  service  being 
followed  by  a  sermon  or  address  peculiarly  designed  for 
their  hearing  and  profit.  This,  of  course,  involves  the 
necessity  of  an  assistant  clergyman,  or  of  a  duly  empow- 
ered layman,  to  conduct  this  service,  while  the  chief  pastor 
conducts  the  service  for  the  congregation  generally.^  Ser- 
vices of  this  character  are  numbered  by  the  hundred  in 
metropolitan  and  in  rural  communities  in  England,  where 
they  are  no  longer  deemed  an  experiment,  but  are  counted 
an  approved  feature  of  pastoral  work  in  churches  of  the 
Establishment,  and  even  yet  more  commonly  in  the 
churches  of  non-conformists  generally.^     Services  very 

Rev.  E.  P.  Hammond,  of  America,  during  his  visit  to  Great  Britain,  in  1867. 
See,  on  this  point,  T.  B.  Bishop's  A  Plea  for  Children  s  Services,  p.  13  f. 

"^  See  the  Rev.  Samuel  Martin's  "  Separate  Services  for  Sunday  School 
(Z\vC\.Axe.x\.,"  va.  Papers  for  Teachers  ;  also  Sir  Charles  Reed's  The  Infant  Class 
in  the  Sunday  School,  pp.  81-101. 

2  As  long  ago  as  1866,  Mr.  Fountain  J.  Hartley,  an  honorary  secretary  of 
the  London  Sunday  School  Union,  writing  on  this  subject,  said :  "  Three 
hundred  and  eleven  separate  morning  services  are  now  reported  by  the  Lon- 
don schools  ;  and  as  some  of  the  schools  do  not  meet  in  the  morning  at  all, 
while  many  others  do  not  possess  school-rooms  in  v>'hich  services  can  be  held 
apart  from  the  usual  public  engagements,  a  large  majority  may  be  said  to 

21 


322  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

much  like  these  were  quite  a  feature  in  Christian  work 
in  Boston,  more  than  half  a  century  ago.^ 

This  form  of  separate  service  bears  much  the  same 
relation  to  the  ordinary  church-service  that  the  primary 
class  bears  to  the  main  Sunday-school.  Its  tendency  is 
to  interest  the  children  in  both  public  worship  and  pulpit 
preaching,  and  to  train  them  for  an  intelligent  part  in  the 
one,  and  for  an  intelligent  apprehension  of  the  other.  So 
far  from  leading  them  away  from  church  attendance,  it 
brings  them  to  an  enjoyment  of  that  measure  of  it  which 
is  now  permitted  them,  and  to  a  pleasant  looking  forward 
to  the  time  when  they  can  be  advanced  to  a  share  in  all 
of  its  privileges,  for  an  appreciation  of  which  they  are  now 
preparing.  The  united  testimony  of  those  who  have  had 
experience  of  the  separate  service  for  children  on  this 
plan,  seems  to  be  unqualifiedly  in  its  favor,  in  view  of 
its  practical  working  and  of  its  manifest  tendency. 

More  than  forty  years  ago,  a  prize  essay  on  the  reli- 
gious training  of  children,  published  by  the  London 
Sunday  School  Union,  protested  against  the  enforced 
attendance  of  children  at  services  expressly  designed  for 
adults,  and  advocated  the  plan  of  separate  services  for 
children.  Said  the  writer  of  this  essay:  "It  would  be 
y 

have  embraced  the  plan  of  endeavoring  to  conduct  juvenile  worship  in  a  style 
and  manner  suitable  to  the  age  and  capacity  of  the  worshipers"  ("Sunday 
School  Statistics,  and  the  Lesson  they  Teach,"  p.  27,  in  Papers  for  Teachers). 
Yet  earlier.  Sir  (then  Mr.)  Charles  Reed,  in  advocating  this  agency,  said : 
"  The  author  of  this  book  has  collected,  from  all  the  principal  towns  in  England 
and  Wales,  the  statistics  upon  this  subject,  the  result  of  which  is  to  prove,  that 
almost  everywhere  objections  have  been  overcome,  and  the  experiment  having 
been  successful,  the  new  scheme  of  infant  service  has  become  a  fixed  institu- 
tion in  every  school  "  ( 77^1?  Infant  Class  in  the  Sunday  School,  p.  84,  note). 

1  See  Report  of  the  Alitiisters  at  Large  for  1835. 


ITS  DIFFICUL  TIES.  323 

no  greater  absurdity  for  an  Englishman  who  knew  noth- 
ing but  his  mother-tongue  to  attend  a  sanctuary  where 
the  entire  service  was  conducted  in  Latin,  than  for  chil- 
dren ignorant  of  the  first  principles  of  Christianity  to  be 
taken  to  our  churches  and  chapels,  and  told  that  merely 
sitting  quiet  there,  without  in  the  least  degree  entering 
into  the  spirit  of  what  is  going  forward,  is  *to  keep  holy 
the  sabbath  day.'  It  is  a  perfect  mockery;  and  God, 
who  looketh  at  the  heart,  seeth  multitudes  of  children 
trained  thus  to  desecrate  his  house  and  profane  his  day." 
Therefore,  "  in  lieu  of  the  adult  public  service,  it  would 
be  well  to  hold,  at  the  same  time,  every  sabbath  morn- 
ing, a  separate  religious  service  for  children,  adapted  to 
their  tender  capacities.  The  children  should  have  a  ser- 
mon preached  to  them  by  a  regularly  appointed  party  ; 
a  text  should  be  taken  and  a  discourse  delivered;  matter, 
manner,  and  style  suited  to  their  infantile  minds."  ^ 

A  quarter  of  a  century  and  more  after  this  suggestion, 
from  a  non-conformist  source,  the  subject  of  separate  ser- 
vices for  children  was  a  theme  of  prominent  discussion 
in  the  Church  [of  England]  Congress  at  Brighton, — as 
indeed  it  had  and  has  been  in  many  another  religious 
conference, — and  on  this  occasion  a  speaker,  who  testified 
from  a  wide  field  of  observation,  said  emphatically:  "I 
have  never  known  a  separate  service,  when  conducted 
with  any  spirit,  to  fail.  The  children  appreciate  it  be- 
cause it  is  their  service,  and  [they]  joining  in  it  with  heart 
and  lips,  their  worship  comes  up  with  acceptance  before 
Him  who  deigns  out  of  the  mouths  of  babes  and  suck- 
lings to  perfect  praise."     And  yet  more  recently  Bishop 

^  Louisa  Davids's  The  Sunday  School,  p.  224  f. 


324  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

W.  Walsham  How,  the  Suffragan  of  [East]  London,  said : 
"Children's  services  [and  he  included  both  'separate' 
and  'special'^  services  in  this  designation]  are  becoming 
more  and  more  a  recognized  feature  in  our  church  [of 
England]  system."  And  he  added  pertinently :  "  It  is 
strange  how  completely  the  children,  who  always  form  an 
important  element  in  our  congregations,  were  neglected 
in  past  times."  ^  Children's  services  in  Westminster  Ab- 
bey, with  preaching  by  the  Dean,  have  now  had  promi- 
nence for  years ;  and  they  were  never  more  admirably 
and  profitably  conducted  than  under  the  administration 
of  Dean  Bradley,  who  was  a  teacher  before  he  was  in 
this  place  as  a  preacher. 

A  plan  for  a  weekly  separate  service  for  children  which 
has  been  more  widely  followed  in  America,  and  which 
is  by  no  means  an  uncommon  plan  in  England,  is  for 
the  pastor  to  give  to  that  service  the  place  of  a  regular 
service  in  the  order  of  the  Lord's  Day  arrangement  for 
the  sanctuary.  In  other  words,  the  pastor  conducts  one 
service  for  the  benefit  of  the  adult  members  of  his  con- 
gregation, and  one  for  the  benefit  of  the  children  and 
youth  of  his  congregation.  Even  this  gives  an  advan- 
tage in  the  division  of  the  services  to  the  adult  mem- 
bership ;  for  there  are  comparatively  few  adults  in  the 
average  congregation  who  do  not  know  enough  to  under- 
stand a  service  which  is  within  the  scope  of  a  child's 
comprehension,  if  they  choose  to  attend  it;  while  there 
are,  on  the  other  hand,  but  few  children  who  can  com- 
prehend the  meaning  of  services  distinctly  intended  for 

*  See  T.  B.  Bishop's  A  Plea  for  Children's  Services. 
'  Plain  Words  to  Children,  Preface,  p.  v. 


ITS  DIFFICULTIES.  325 

the  adult  ear  and  mind.  It  would  indeed  be  an  ungra- 
cious spirit  for  an  adult  to  object  to  a  service  in  the  Lord's 
house,  simply  on  the  ground  that  the  Lord's  dearest  ones 
could  understand  it. 

For  at  least  a  quarter  of  a  century,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Tyng 
"  made  the  sermon  of  every  Sunday  afternoon  a  sermon 
to  the  young."  Referring  to  this  service,  after  eleven 
years  of  its  testing,  he  said:  "The  Lord  has  been  pleased 
very  graciously  and  mercifully  to  own  this  [pulpit]  teach- 
ing in  many  cases  of  conversion  to  himself,  and  in  much 
real  edification  of  youth  in  his  service.  I  have  considered 
no  part  of  my  work  more  valuable  and  important  than 
this.  And  certainly  no  portion  of  it  has  seemed  so  popu- 
lar and  acceptable  to  others."*  Emphasizing  the  value  of 
pulpit  services  of  this  character,  Dr.  Tyng  added:  "If 
every  pastor  would  give  one  sermon  on  every  Sunday 
especially  addressed  to  the  young,  and  designed  and  pre- 
pared to  teach  them,  he  would  find  himself  enlarging  his 
direct  usefulness  in  this  particular  work,  and  equally 
advancing  the  value  and  benefit  of  every  other  class  of 
his  public  and  private  labors  in  religious  instruction  also. 
The  parents  and  [other]  adults  of  his  flock  will  learn  as 
much,  and  love  as  much  the  teaching  for  themselves, 
when  he  speaks  to  the  youth  directly  and  simply,  as 
when  he  addresses  them  in  a  deeper  and  more  mature 
discourse."^  On  one  occasion  I  heard  good  Dr.  Tyng 
give  added  force  to  this  latter  thought  by  saying:  "If 
more  ministers  would  preach  to  the  children  of  their  con- 
gregation, more  of  the  grown  people  would  understand 
their   ministers."     Dr.   Broadus   says,   similarly:     "One 

1  Forty  Years'  Experience  in  Sunday-schools,  p.  24  f.  '  Ibid.,  p.  210. 


326  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

great  benefit  of  frequently  preaching  to  children  is  that  a 
minister  thus  learns  better  how  to  preach  to  grown  folks, 
both  in  the  way  of  siuiplifying  and  enlivening  the  religious 
instruction."  ^ 

Another  clergyman,  whose  weekly  sermons  to  children 
were  continued  with  profit  for  a  series  of  years,  was  the 
Rev.  Dr.  J.  L.  McKee,  of  Kentucky,  a  Presbyterian  pas- 
tor, and  later  a  college  professor.  In  looking  back  upon 
this  phase  of  his  ministerial  work,  after  an  experiment 
with  it  of  seven  years,  this  was  his  testimony  concerning 
it :  "I  have  no  question  in  saying  that  if  I  have  any  way 
of  estimating  my  work,  this  [preaching  to  children]  is  by 
far  the  most  favorable  part  of  all  that  I  have  done."  And, 
as  expressive  of  his  view  of  the  relative  importance  and 
value  of  this  kind  of  ministerial  work,  he  said  of  efforts 
to  hasten  a  preparedness  for  the  millennium:  "  In  order 
to  reach  it  the  sooner,  instead  of  giving  two  sermons  a 
day  to  grown  people  and  one  to  children,  we  should  at 
least  reverse  this  and  give  children  two,  while  we  give 
the  grown  people  one.  If  what  we  say  about  the  mem- 
ory and  the  early  impressions  be  true,  and  if  it  is  of  the 
greatest  importance  to  give  the  right  direction  to  the 
young  heart,  and  if  what  we  state  about  the  mind  being 
unoccupied  in  childhood,  and  that  you  can  write  upon  it 
impressions  that  can  never  be  blotted  out — if  this  be  true, 
then  I  say  the  logic  of  the  case  compels  us  to  give  the 
children  two  sermons  where  we  give  the  grown  people 
one.  And  I  tell  you  if  the  children  had  the  money  to  pay 
the  salaries  of  the  ministers  this  would  be  done."  Dr. 
McKee,  like  Dr.  Tyng,  found  that  in  preaching  to  the 

1  In  the  Introduction  to  Eaton's  Talks  to  Children,  p.  lo  f. 


ITS  DIFFICUL  TIES.  327 

children  nc  was  for  the  first  time  making  the  truth  intel- 
ligible to  many  of  his  adult  hearers ;  and  as  an  added 
advantage  in  preaching  of  this  character  he  said :  "  It  is 
very  often  the  case  that  there  is  something  you  want  to 
say  to  the  grown  people  that  is  somehow  at  outs  with  the 
dignity,  or  propriety,  or  spirit  of  a  sermon  to  them  ;  but 
you  can  give  them  *  Hail,  Columbia '  over  the  heads  of 
the  children;  and  they  can't  say  a  word  about  it."  ' 

Twenty-five  years  ago,  the  Rev.  Edward  Spooner,  a 
Church  of  England  clergyman,  in  a  little  book  entitled 
Parson  and  People,  which  was  introduced  to  American 
readers  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Leonard  Woolsey  Bacon,  told  of 
his  gratifying  experience  with  weekly  services  for  chil- 
dren, including  a  sermon,  or  a  "sermonette"  as  he  called 
it.  And  he  gave  the  testimony  of  other  clergymen,  both 
of  "  High  Church  "  and  of  "  Evangelical"  affinities,  who 
had  tried  the  same  plan  with  excellent  results  for  a  series  of 
years.^  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  this  is  by  no  means  a 
novelty,  nor  a  practice  confined  to  one  class  of  ministers. 

Still  another  method  of  securing  a  weekly  service  of 
preaching  to  children,  which  has  found  favor  on  both 
sides  of  the  ocean,  is  that  of  giving  to  the  children  a  brief 
and  distinct  portion  of  the  regular  forenoon  service,  every 
Sunday  morning.  In  some  churches  the  children's  por- 
tion is  given  to  them  at  the  opening  of  the  forenoon 
service,  and  they  are  then  permitted  to  retire  from  the 
sanctuary.  In  other  churches,  they  receive  their  por- 
tion just  before  the  sermon  to  the  adults  is  given  by  the 
preacher,  and  then  they  remain  through  the  entire  service. 

*  Report  0/  the  Fifth  National  Sunday  School  Convention  (1872),  pp.  7^^-77. 
*  Parson  and  People,  pp.  137-141. 


328  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

An  earnest  plea  for  this  recognition  of  the  children  by 
the  preacher,  was  made  at  the  Pan-Presbyterian  Council 
in  Philadelphia,  in  1880,  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Alexander 
Macleod,  of  Birkenhead,  England.  Speaking  of  his  own 
branch  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  as  he  might,  indeed,  have 
spoken  of  wellnigh  every  other  branch,  also,  he  said: 
-  "  Who  can  think  of  the  immense  number  of  children 
scattered  over  our  Presbyterian  churches,  who  come  up 
to  the  public  service  Sunday  after  Sunday,  with  eager 
hope  of  finding  some  interest  for  their  young  souls,  with 
that  hope  growing  smaller  and  smaller  as  the  brief  years 
of  childhood  run  out,  until  at  last  the  pathetic  habit  is 
formed  of  expecting  nothing — who  can  think  of  this,  and 
not  sympathize  with  the  desire  to  provide  for  them  also 
a  portion  in  the  service  which  they  shall  look  forward 
to,  and  by  which  their  spiritual  lives  shall  be  fed?"  In 
explaining  a  method  by  which  the  children  should  have 
a  portion  of  every  forenoon  service  he  said :  "  I  am  not 
advocating  an  untried  proposal.  Many  congregations  in 
England  and  Scotland  have  had  happy  experience  of  it 
for  years."  Dr.  Macleod's  recommendation  was:  "At 
every  morning  service,  for  one  ten  minutes  out  of  the 
I  ninety,  let  the  minister  be  in  direct  contact  with  the  souls 

/  ,-  of  the  children.  Let  never  a  [Lord's]  day  pass  in  which 
he  shall  not  give  wings  to  a  story  of  God's  love,  or  [of] 
Christian  life.  ,  .  .  Doing  this,  we  shall  whet  and  keep 
whole  the  appetite  of  the  children  for  the  services  of  the 
sanctuary.  Doing  this,  we  shall  open  [to  them]  the  win- 
dows of  heaven,  and  give  them  also  glimpses  of  the  vision 
of  God.  And  in  that  golden  place,  in  those  so  conse- 
crated minutes,  we  shall  bring  back  for  the  children,  and 
it  may  be  for  their  parents  as  well,  the  days  when  Jesus 


ITS  DIFFICULTIES.  329 

spoke  to  his  disciples  in  parables,  and  taught  those  chil- 
dren of  his  love,  as  they  were  able  to  receive  his  words."  ^ 

Before  this  appeal  of  Dr.  Macleod  was  made,  there 
were  American  pastors  who  employed  much  the  same 
method  as  that  which  he  advocated,  as  a  means  of  pulpit 
provision  for  children.  Perhaps  the  earliest  collection  of 
"  five-minute  sermons "  to  children,  given  to  the  public 
on  this  side  of  the  water,  was  one  (in  1878)  by  the  Rev. 
J.  G.  Merrill,  a  Congregational  clergyman,  then  of  Daven- 
port, Iowa,  and  now  of  St.  Louis,  Missouri.  A  later  col- 
lection of  similar  character  (in  1882)  was  from  the  pen  of. 
the  Rev.  John  C.  Hill,  a  Presbyterian  clergyman,  of  Fay- 
etteville,  New  York,  who  estimated  that  at  that  time  some 
two  hundred  pastors  in  the  United  States  were  in  the 
habit  of  preaching  such  sermons  to  the  children  of  their 
congregations.^  A  more  recent  collection  of  the  same 
sort  has  been  sent  out  by  the  Rev.  William  Armstrong, 
a  well-known  Methodist  Episcopal  clergyman.^ 

In  favor  of  the  plan  of  providing  for  the  children  first, 
and  then  permitting  them  to  retire  from  the  house,  it  can 
be  said  that  that  was  practically  the  custom  in  the  Chris- 
tian Church  for  the  first  four  or  five  centuries  of  our  era; 
when  the  catechumens  were  expected  to  leave  the  house 
at  the  close  of  the  Bible  reading  and  the  familiar  homi- 
lizing,  without  even  having  a  share  in  the  public  prayers 
or  in  the  recitation  of  the  Creed.*  As  an  excuse,  on  the 
other  hand,  for  retaining  the  children  through  the  remain- 

1  Report  of  Proceedings  of  the  Second  General  Council  of  the  Presbyterian 
Alliance,  pp.  441-447. 

*  The  Children' s  Sermon. 

'  Pive-Minute  Sermons  to  Children. 

*  See  Bingham's  Antiquities  of  the  Christian  Church,  Bk.  xiv.,  ch.  5,  ^  2. 


330  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

der  of  the  services,  which  they  cannot  understand,  it  can 
be  said  that  a  child  who  has  already  been  given,  by  his 
pastor,  something  to  think  of  during  the  morning  hour, 
will  sit  patiently,  and  without  listlessness,  while  his  pa- 
rents are  receiving  their  portion  for  the  day.  If,  indeed, 
a  child  has  received  a  single  fresh  thought,  which  he 
grasps  as  his  own,  or  a  single  earnest  impression  which 
makes  itself  felt  for  the  hour,  from  his  pastor's  Sunday 
morning  sermon,  he  has  made  a  larger  gain  than  that  of 
the  average  adult  sermon  hearer,  week  by  week,  all  the 
world  over. 

And  this  thought  suggests  yet  another  method  which 
has  found  favor  with  some,  for  meeting  the  difficulty  of 
giving  the  children  their  portion  from  the  pulpit,  without 
the  necessity  of  separating  them  for  the  time  being  from 
the  great  congregation.  I  describe  it,  by  an  illustration, 
as  it  is  practiced  by  some  pastors,  more  or  less  regularly, 
in  their  pulpit  ministrations.  A  pastor  is  preaching  to 
his  adult  congregation  in  his  ordinary  style.  At  a  fitting 
and  a  well-considered  point  in  his  discourse  he  pauses, 
looks  down  into  the  faces  of  those  children  who  are  be- 
fore him,  and  says  familiarly :  "  I  want  these  children  who 
are  here  this  morning  to  understand  what  I  am  preaching 
about."  By  that  time  the  preacher  has  the  ears  of  every 
child  in  the  congregation;  and  he  has  caught  the  fresh 
attention  of  not  a  few  of  the  adults  whose  thoughts  were 
wandering.  He  repeats  his  text,  and  tells  its  meaning  in 
a  few  simple  words.  He  gives  a  carefully  chosen  illus- 
tration, calculated  to  make  the  main  truth  of  his  text 
clearer  to  a  child's  mind.  He  adds  an  application  of  the 
text  and  its  truth  to  the  daily  life  and  to  the  life  purpose 
of  a  child.     Then  he  says :    "  Now,  children,  that  is  what 


ITS  DIFJ'TCUL  TIES.  3  3  I 

I  am  preaching  about ;  and  I  want  to  see  if  you  can 
understand  what  I  am  saying  about  it  to  these  older 
persons;"  and  he  resumes  the  thread  of  his  discourse, 
after  a  digression,  or  after  a  re-impression,  of  this  sort,  of 
perhaps  three  or  four  minutes. 

Every  child  in  that  congregation  feels  that  that  sermon 
is  preached  to  Jiivi.  He  listens  to  Ids  preacher  with  a 
new  interest  in  what  is  being  said,  even  though  he  can- 
not understand  it  fully/  And  more  than  a  majority  of 
the  older  members  of  that  congregation — wherever  the 
church  may  be — are  enabled  to  have  a  better  understand- 
ing of  the  point  and  purport  of  that  sermon  than  tJiey 
could  have  gained  without  some  such  mode  as  this  of  its 
illustration  and  enforcement. 

Nor  does  this  method  of  interrupting  the  main  current 
of  a  religious  discourse  to  adults,  in  order  to  speak  help- 
ful words  to  child  hearers,  lack  the  sanction  of  high  an- 
tiquity in  God's  church.     Long  before  the  days  of  pulpit 


^  "  '  Papa,  are  you  going  to  say  anything  to-day  that  I  can  understand?  ' 
asked  a  Uttle  girl  of  her  father — a  Massachusetts  pastor — as  he  was  setting 
out  for  church  on  a  Sabbath  morning.  This  tender  appeal  touched  the  loving 
father's  heart,  and  he  could  not  answer  his  daughter  nay  ;  he  could  not  say 
to  his  child  that  she  must  sit  in  penance  through  all  the  long  service  with 
never  a  word  designed  for  her  instruction  and  cheer.  So,  as  he  preached,  he 
said,  'And  now,  children,  I  will  say  something  to  you  about  this."  At  once 
the  face  of  every  child  in  that  audience  brightened.  Sleepy  little  ones  started 
up  ;  tired  ones  took  fresh  heart.  Looking  first  at  the  minister,  then  at  each 
other,  again  back  to  him,  they  were  all  eagerness  for  his  message,  as  though 
now  there  was  something  else  for  them  than  to  nod  and  yawn  and  ache  un- 
cared  for ;  and  although  the  pastor's  following  sentences  to  them  were  few 
and  simple,  doubtless  many  felt  as  did  the  child  who  had  pleaded  for  this 
attention  when,  on  her  return  at  noon,  she  said  contentedly,  '  Papa,  I  under- 
stood all  that  you  said  this  morning.'  Dear  children  !  who  wouldn't  do  as 
much  as  this  for  them  in  every  sermon? — they  are  gratified  so  easily."  (The 
Lecturer's  Children  in  the  Tetnple,  p.  247  f.). 


332  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

sermonizing,  David,  in  a  psalm  prepared  for  public  wor- 
ship, breaks  in  upon  his  appeal  to  the  Lord's  saints  with 
the  loving  appeal  to  the  little  ones  :  "  Come,  ye  childi'en, 
hearken  unto  me :  I  will  teach  yoii  the  fear  of  the  Lord."^ 
Similarly,  the  apostle  to  the  Gentiles  stops,  as  it  were,  in 
his  pastoral  letter  to  the  churches  of  his  charge,  which 
was  to  be  read  aloud  in  their  pulpits — if  indeed  they  had 
any  pulpits  in  those  days — to  say  tenderly  to  the  child 
hearers  of  his  message :  "  Children,  obey  your  parents  in 
the  Lord :  for  this  is  right.  Honour  thy  father  and  mother 
(which  is  the  first  commandment  with  promise),  that  it 
may  be  well  with  thee,  and  thou  mayest  live  long  on  the 
earth ;"^  and  then  he  resumes  his  counsel  to  adults.  And 
a  greater  than  David  or  Paul  was  more  than  willing  to 
interrupt  the  thread  oi  his  discourse  to  adults,  in  order  to 
minister  to  the  children  who  were  within  reach  of  him.^ 
He  was  even  "  moved  with  indignation"  at  an  objection, 
by  his  chosen  disciples,  to  such  an  interruption  of  the 
Preacher  of  preachers  ;  and  our  Lord  made  it  clear,  on 
that  occasion  as  on  many  another,  that  a  loving  ministry 
to  children  is  never  irreverent  or  undignified,  nor  is  it 
out  of  place,  by  one  who  would  do  most  and  best  for  the 
honor,  and  in  the  service,  of  the  Saviour  of  the  child-like. 

It  was  not  an  uncommon  thing,  indeed,  in  the  Early 
Church,  for  the  preacher  to  pause  in  the  middle  of  a  text 
of  Scripture  cited  by  him,  in  order  that  his  hearers,  young 
and  old,  might  take  up  the  text  thus  begun,  and  recite  it 
to  its  conclusion.  St.  Augustine  mentions,  for  example, 
that  when  he  would  cite  the  words  of  St.  Paul  in  i  Tim, 
1:5,  beginning,  '"The  end  of  the  commandment  is' — 

>  Psa.  34:  II.         2  Eph.  6:  I,  2.         *  Mark  10:  13-16;  Luke  18:  15-17. 


ITS  DIFFICULTIES.  333 

before  he  would  proceed  any  farther  he  called  to  the 
people  to  repeat  the  remainder  of  the  verse  with  him; 
upon  which  they  all  cried  out  immediately,  '  charity  out 
of  a  pure  heart,'  by  which,  he  says,  they  showed  that  they 
had  not  been  unprofitable  hearers."^  Among  the  pub- 
lished sermons  of  Dr.  Doddridge,  of  a  century  and  a  half 
ago,  there  are  illustrations  of  his  method  of  turning  aside 
from  his  discourse  to  adults  in  order  to  address  his  child 
hearers  directly.^  John  Wesley's  sermons,  also,  furnish 
illustrations  of  this  practice  in  his  day.^  And  so  it  ap- 
pears, in  this  thing  as  in  many  another,  that  what  is 
looked  upon  by  some  as  a  modern  innovation  is  not  such 
a  novelty  after  all. 

The  preaching  of  occasional  discourses  to  children  is 
certainly  not  a  thing  of  recent  origin,  whatever  advance 
may  have  been  made  in  the  frequency  or  the  quality  of 
such  discourses.  A  sermon  of  this  character,  preached 
by  the  Rev.  Samuel  Phillips,  of  Andover,  Massachusetts, 
in  1739,  was  published  soon  after  its  preaching.  It  evi- 
dently was  not  a  "five-minute  sermon,"  for  in  its  printed 
form  it  occupies  nearly  one  hundred  pages  of  an  eighteen- 
mo  volume.  As  an  indication  of  its  style  it  may  be  noted 
that  it  starts  out  with  a  careful  explanation  of  the  fact  that 

1  Bingham's  Antiq.,  Bk.  xiv.,  ch.  4,  ^  26. 

'  See,  for  example,  his  Sermons  on  the  Religious  Education  of  Children, 
pp.  59-62.  Near  the  close  of  his  fourth  sermon  of  this  series  he  begins  a 
digression  thus  :  "  I  would  [now]  address  myself  to  children.  To  you,  the 
dear  lambs  of  the  flock,  whom  I  look  upon  as  no  contemptible  part  of  my 
charge,  I  have  been  speaking  for  you  a  great  while,  and  now  give  me  leave 
to  speak  to  you  ;  and  pray  do  you  endeavor,  for  a  few  minutes,  to  mind  every 
word  that  I  say." 

'  See  an  illustration  of  this,  in  his  Sermon  on  Obedience  to  Parents  (  Works, 
VII.,  loi  f.).  ■*  Children  Well  Imployed. 


334  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

when  it  is  said  in  the  New  Testament  narrative  that  Jesus 
of  Nazareth  rode  into  Jerusalem  on  "  an  Ass,  and  a  Colt 
the  fole  of  an  Ass,  the  words  do  not  intend  that  he  sat  on 
botli ;  sometimes  on  one  and  then  on  the  other,  as  some 
have  imagin'd."*  Yet  only  a  few  years  later  than  this, 
John  Wesley  prepared  a  sermon  to  children  from  Psalm 
34:  1 1,  in  which  he  used  no  word  having  more  than  two 
syllables;  and  this  sermon  he  preached  again  and  again 
as  opportunity  offered.^ 

It  is,  however,  within  the  last  three-quarters  of  a  cen- 
tury or  so  that  the  importance  and  the  difficulties  of 
preaching  to  children  have  come  into  a  recognized  promi- 
nence in  the  sphere  of  the  Christian  ministry  which  was 
quite  unknown  before.  The  earliest  published  volume 
of  brief  sermons  which  had  been  preached  to  children, 
with  which  I  am  acquainted,  was  issued  in  1823,  by  the 
Rev.  Samuel  Nott,  Jr.,  one  of  the  first  five  missionaries 
of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign 
Missions.^  This  volume  was  followed  by  another  of  the 
same  character,  a  year  later  ;^  all  the  sermons  in  both 
volumes  having  been  preached  by  him  before  their  pub- 
lication. Possibly  it  was  because  of  his  experiences  in 
proclaiming  the^gospel  to  the  heathen,  that  Mr.  Nott  was 
prompted,  and  was  enabled,  to  preach  in  simplicity  and 

1  In  1713  the  Rev.  Matthew  Henry  preached  six  sermons  to  young  people, 
which  were  published  in  1722,  or  earlier,  under  the  title  of  The  Pleasantness 
of  a  Religions  Life  Open'  d  and  Prov  d,  and  Recom7nended  to  the  Considei  ation 
of  all.  Particularly  of  Young  People. 

*  Tyerman's  Life  of  Wesley,  III.,  472,  607. 

2  See  Sprague's  ^««a/j  of  the  America?t  Pulpit,  II.,  192;  s\so,  A  fern  oria  I 
Volume  of  the  First  Fifty  Years  of  the  Americayi  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions. 

*  Sermons  for  Children,  Designed  to  Promote  their  Immediate  Piety. 


ITS  DIFFICUL  TIES.  3  3  5 

directness  to  children.  About  the  same  time  a  Httle  vol- 
ume of  expository  "Sermons  for  Children"  was  published 
by  the  Religious  Tract  Society,  of  London,  for  distribu- 
tion in  the  Sunday-schools  of  that  day.  Indeed,  as  early 
as  1 8 1 9,  a  collection  of  seventeen  "  Sermons  to  Children  " 
was  published  in  Andover,  Massachusetts,  by  the  New 
England  Tract  Society;  but  it  is  not  shown  that  either 
of  these  last  two  collections  was  of  sermons  which  had 
actually  been  preached  before  their  publication. 

The  st}-le  of  none  of  these  sermons  was,  however,  such 
as  to  make  them  peculiarly  attractive  to  children.  But 
this  cannot  be  said  of  the  bright  and  impressive  sermons, 
or  pulpit  lectures,  to  children,  given  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  John 
Todd^  at  a  series  of  quarterly  services  for  children  in  his 
Philadelphia  pastorate,  and  published  in  1834,  and  later. 
It  was  in  1 840  that  the  Rev.  Dr.  F.  W.  P.  Greenwood, 
of  King's  Chapel,  in  Boston,  published  a  volume  similar 
to  that  of  Dr.  Todd's  as  the  outcome  of  a  monthly  ser- 
vice for  the  children  of  his  charge.^  A  few  years  after 
this,  a  volume  of  the  same  general  character,  with  a  cor- 
responding origin,  was  published  in  England,  by  the 
Rev.  Dr.  S.  G.  Green,  then  pastor  of  the  Silver  Street 
(Baptist)  Chapel,  Taunton;  later,  the  president  of  Rawdon 
College,  and  now  a  secretary  of  the  London  Religious 
Tract  Society.^  These  volumes  marked  the  beginning  of 
a  new  state  of  things,  and  they  helped  its  developing. 
The  added  interest  in  the  religious  welfare  of  children,  in 
England  and  in  America,  awakened  in  and  through  the 
Sunday-school,  was  now  being  felt  in  the  pidpit,  as  it  had 

1  Lectures  to  Children.  2  Sermons  to  Children. 

^  Addresses  to  Children,  and  Pearls  for  the  Little  Ones. 


336  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

already  been  felt  in  iht  family  ;  and  from  that  day  to  this 
the  tendency  in  the  Church  of  Christ,  in  those  lands  and 
beyond,  has  been  more  and  more  toward  the  intelligent 
and  hearty  co-operation  of  family  and  school  and  pulpit, 
for  the  right  influencing,  the  right  training,  and  the  right 
impressing,  of  the  young. 

It  was  after  this  beginning  of  new  interest  in  sermons 
to  children  that  the  Rev.  Dr.  Alexander  Fletcher,  of  Lon- 
don,^ and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Richard  Newton,  of  Philadelphia,'"^ 
acquired  such  prominence  as  preachers  to  children  — 
mainly  because  they  were  preachers  to  children  when 
other  ministers  generally  were  not;  and  that  the  suc- 
cessive volumes  of  their  sermons  to  children  added  so 
largely  to  the  literature  of  this  theme.  And  now  the 
extent  and  variety  and  relative  value  of  published  ser- 
mons to  children  command  consideration  in  any  proper 
estimate  of  the  homiletical  literature  of  the  day,  including, 
as  they  do,  the  work  of  such  men,  in  addition  to  those 
already  noted,  as  Frederick  Maurice^  and  Dean  Stanley* 
and  Bishop  How^  and  Bishop  Ryle^  and  Drs.  Samuel 
Cox^  and  J.  Oswald  Eiykes^  and  John  Edmond^  and 

1  See  his  Lectures  Adapted  to  the  Capacity  of  Children. 

*  See  the  eighteen  volumes  of  his  sermons  to  children,  published  by  Robert 
Carter  and  Brothers.  Several  of  these  volumes  have  been  translated  into 
various  languages  for  use  among  children  of  other  lajids. 

'  The  Lord's  Prayer,  The  Creed,  and  The  Commandtnents. 

♦  Servians  for  Children.  *  Plain  Words  to  Children. 

fi  See  The  Child's  Preacher,  pp.  278-298,  388-406. 

'  The  Bird's  Nest,  and  Other  Sermons,  for  Children  of  All  Ages. 

8  See  Outlines  of  Sermons  to  Children. 

*•  The  Children  s  Church  at  Home. 


JJS  DIl'FICUL  TIES.  337 

Alexander  Maclcod/  of  England;  Drs.  John  Cairns^ 
and  William  Arnot^  and  J.  R.  Macduff''  and  Horatius 
Bonar*^  and  A.  A.  Bonar®  and  James  Stalker/  of  Scot- 
land ;  and  Drs.  William  S.  Plumer^  and  Andrew  P. 
Peabody''  and  John  HalP*^  and  William  P.  Breed"  and 
T.  T.  Eaton ^^  and  Theodore  T.  Munger^^  and  Robert 
Boyd"  and  Mortimer  Blake ^'^  and  Marcus  D.  Buell/^  and 
many  others  ^^  in  America. 

But  the  more  there  has  been  done  in  the  line  of  preach- 
ing to  children,  the  more  it  has  been  evident  that  no  other 
kind  of  preaching  is  so  difficult  of  right  doing  as  pulpit 
preaching  to  children.  The  few  marked  successes,  and 
the  many  wretched  failures,  in  this  department  of  effort, 
are  alike  indicative  of  this  difficulty.  In  order  to  preach 
properly  to  children,  a  minister  needs  to  be  fully  qualified 
to  preach  properly  to  adults,  as  a  preliminary  to  his  earli- 
est preparation  for  his  preaching  to  children.  In  other 
words,  not  until  he  is  already  able  to  preach  well  to  adults, 
is  a  man  fitted  to  begin  to  learn  how  to  preach  to  children. 
A  good  sermon  to  children  must  have  in  it  a  thought  that 
is  worthy  of  the  interest  of  the  maturest  mind.     When 

'  The  Wonderful  Lamp,  The  Gentle  Heart,  and  The  Childre7is  Portion. 
"^  See  Outlines  of  Serfnons  to  Children.  ^  Ibid. 

*  Hosannas  of  the  Children.  "  See  Outlines  of  Sermons  to  Children. 

<>  Ibid.  ''  Ibid.  ^  Short  Sermons  to  Little  Children. 

9  Sermons  for  Children.  1"  Special  and  occasional  sermons. 

11  Grapes  from  the  Great  Vine,  and  Under  the  Oak. 
12  Talks  to  Children.         "  Lamps  and  Paths.  "  Food  for  the  Lambs.    ■ 

15  Bible  Children.  16  See  Outlines  of  Sermons  to  Children. 

"See  McLean's  Food  for  the  Lambs;  Collier's  Little  Crowns;  Norton's 
Sermons  to  Children;  Wells's  Bible  Echoes;  Ross's  Sertnons  for  Chil- 
dren, etc. 

22 


338  PREACHING   TO  CHILDREN: 

that  thought  has  control  of  the  preacher's  mind,  he  must 
go  out  of  his  own  mind  into  the  mind  of  a  child,  in  order 
to  think  that  thought  as  a  child  would  think  it.  Then  he 
must  choose  language  which  w^ill  enable  him  to  present 
the  absorbing  thought  of  his  mind  to  the  apprehension  of 
his  child  hearers'  minds.  Beyond  all  this,  he  must  be 
able  to  illustrate  that  truth  clearly ;  to  command  atten- 
tion to  it,  step  by  step,  in  the  processes  of  its  enforcing; 
and  to  make  its  application  evident  to  the  children's  per- 
sonal needs  as  children.  And,  obviously,  there  is  here  a 
call  for  all  the  elements  of  successful  power  in  ordinary 
pulpit  preaching — and  more.  The  work  of  condensing 
and  simplifying  presupposes,  in  fact,  the  possession  of 
something  that  is  worth  condensing  and  simplifying. 
Hence  the  peculiar  difficulty  there  is  in  preaching  to  chil- 
dren as  children  ought  to  be  preached  to.  As  children 
ought  to  be  preached  to,  I  say — not  as  they  are  preached  to ; 
for  much  of  the  preaching  to  children  is  childish  and  silly ; 
poorer,  if  possible,  than  the  poorest  preaching  to  adults. 

The  testimony  of  Dr.  Todd,  as  a  result  of  his  experi- 
ence as  a  children's  preacher,  is  :  "  That  children  are  a 
very  important  class  in  every  congregation,  all  admit; 
that  ministers  owe  them  some  peculiar  duties  is  equally 
plain ;  and  that  they  are  a  difficult  part  of  the  flock  to 
feed,  the  experience  of  every  one,  who  has  ever  tried  to 
do  his  duty  to  them,  will  testify."^  And  Dr.  Todd  cites 
this  yet  more  explicit  testimony  of  the  Rev.  Richard  Cecil 
to  the  same  effect :  "  Nothing  is  easier  than  to  talk  to 
children ;  but  to  talk  to  them  as  they  ought  to  be  talked 
to,  is  the  very  last  effort  of  ability,     A  maji  [who  does 

1  Preface  to  Lectures  to  Children. 


ITS  DIFFICULTIES.  339 

this]  must  have  a  vigorous  imagination.  He  must  have 
extensive  knowledge,  to  call  in  illustration  from  the  four 
corners  of  the  earth  ;  for  he  will  make  but  little  progress 
but  by  illustration.  It  requires  great  genius  to  throw  the 
niintl  into  the  habits  of  children's  minds.  I  aim  at  this, 
but  I  find  it  the  utmost  effort  of  ability."'  "  It  is  no  easy 
thing  to  speak  effectively  to  children,"^  says  Dr.  S.  G. 
Green.  "  It  is  true  the  difficulty  is  great,"  adds  the  Rev. 
Alexander  Fletcher.^  Said  the  Rev.  Dr.  Newton,  years 
ago,  when  his  preaching  was  at  its  best :  "  My  children's 
sermons  cost  me  more  time  and  labor  than  any  others 
that  I  preach." 

The  Rev.  Dr.  McKee  agrees,  at  this  point,  with  ail 
other  prominent  preachers  to  children.  After  at  least 
seven  years  of  practice  in  this  field,  he  said:  "  I  v/ill  say 
that  it  is  the  most  difficult  work,  by  far,  that  I  have  tried 
to  do.  I  have  not  half  the  apprehension  in  preparing 
sermons  for  grown  audiences  that  I  have  in  preparing  a 
sermon  for  children.  If  I  were  going  to  preach  a  sermon 
to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  I  would  not  have 
anything  like  the  apprehensions  that  I  would  have  were 
I  going  to  preach  to  the  children  here  in  this  city."*  The 
Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Cox,  whose  labors  as  an  expositor  have 
been  so  prominent  and  varied,  and  whose  ability  as  a 
preacher  is  so  marked,  says  of  his  expository  sermons  to 
cliildren,  "  I  can  honestly  say  that  no  sermons  have  cost 
me  so  much."  ^    And  he  adds  that,  after  his  best  thinking 

^  Preface  to  Lectures  to  Children. 

"^  Introduction  to  Addresses  to  Children. 

S  Preface  to  Lectures  Adapted  to  the  Capacities  of  Children. 

*  Report  of  the  Fifth  National  Sunday  School  Cottvention  {1S72),  p.  76. 

^  Preface  to  The  Bird's  Nest  and  Other  Sermons,  p.  vi. 


340  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

over  one  of  these  sermons,  he  has  frequently  been  com- 
pelled to  write  it  out  two  or  three  times  over  before  he 
could  at  all  shape  it  to  his  mind.  Again,  Mr,  Spurgeon, 
who  is  not  without  experience  or  ability  in  this  field  of 
pulpit  effort,  said,  in  a  public  address  on  the  subject,  that 
"  for  himself  he  felt  that  he  could  preach  much  more 
readily  to  the  low  and  groveling  minds  of  grown-up 
people,  than  to  the  purer  and  sublimer  minds  of  children ; 
who  seemed  to  be  nearer  heaven :  better  and  simpler." 

It  is  indeed  probably  true  that  one  reason  for  the  infre- 
quency  of  sermons  to  children  by  preachers  of  exceptional 
power  in  other  fields  of  pulpit  effort,  is  to  be  found  in  the 
conscious  inability  of  these  preachers,  as  a  result  of  some 
unsuccessful  experiments  on  their  part,  to  meet  the  pecu- 
liar requirements  of  this  higher  realm  of  intellectual  per- 
formance ;  as,  obviously,  another  and  yet  more  potent 
reason  is  the  undervaluing  by  such  preachers  of  the  im- 
portance and  advantages  of  pulpit  preaching  to  children. 
And  just  here  I  venture  to  refer  to  a  supposed  depreciation 
of  sermons  to  children,  in  a  series  of  lectures  delivered  in 
this  place  and  presence,^  by  a  preacher  no  less  honored 
and  admired,  and  no  less  worthy  of  honor  and  admira- 
tion, than  the  Rev.  Phillips  Brooks.  And  it  is  because 
the  opinion  of  such  a  man  is  entitled  to  have  weight  in  a 
matter  like  this,  that  I  call  attention  to  the  wide-spread 
popular  misinterpreting  of  Mr.  Brooks's  words  in  this  con- 
nection. He  was  speaking  of  the  mistakes  of  ministers, 
in  their  giving  undue  prominence  to  any  single  feature — 
however  important  that  feature — of  pastoral  work.  After 
noting  several  special  temptations  to  such  overdoing,  he 

1  In  the  Marquand  Chapel  of  Yale  Divinity  School ;  where  the  Lyman 
Beecher  Lectures  on  Preaching  are  delivered,  year  after  year. 


ITS  DIFFICULTIES.  34 1 

added:  "And  so  with  the  children's  church;  one  of  the 
best  and  purest  of  the  Church's  inventions  for  her  work, 
but  by  no  means  enough  to  make  a  special,  peculiar  fea- 
ture of  in  any  congregation.  It  almost  always  weakens 
the  preacher  for  his  preaching  to  adults."  ^ 

This  statement  by  Mr.  Brooks,  which  /,  certainly, 
should  not  take  exception  to  just  as  it  stands,  has  been 
widely  reported  as  an  expression  of  his  opinion  that 
preaching  to  children  tends  to  impair  a  minister's  power 
of  preaching  to  adults;^  whereas  he  said  nothing  of  the 
sort.  As,  therefore,  the  current  report  of  Mr.  Brooks's 
opinion  on  this  subject  is  a  mistake,  it  is  quite  unneces- 
sary to  show  that  it  would  have  been  a  mistake  for  Mr. 
Brooks  to  express  an  opinion  corresponding  with  that 
report.  He  quite  properly  protested  against  such  a  one- 
sided method  of  pulpit  work  for  children  as  would  leave 
the  adults  unprovided  for.  He  might,  indeed,  safely 
have  balanced  his  statement  concerning  the  "  children's 
church,"  by  adding  this  statement  concerning  its  con- 
verse church  agency:  And  so,  again,  with  the  adults' 
church;  one  of  the  best  and  purest  of  the  Church's  in- 
ventions for  her  work,  but  by  no  means  enough  to  make 
the  one  peculiar  feature  of  in  any  congregation.  It  almost 
always  weakens  the  preacher  for  his  preaching  to  children. 

In  this  connection,  there  is  found  added  force  and  per- 
tinency in  the  wise  words  of  Dr.  Horace  Bushnell,  on  the 
entire  subject,  as  he  looked  back  upon  it  in  all  its  bear- 
ings, near  the  close  of  his  wonderfully  fruitful  ministerial 
life.     "  Is  it  not  our  privilege  and  duty,  as  preachers  of 

*  Lectures  on  Preaching,  p.  96. 
'  See,  e.  g.,  the  reference  to  this  by  Dr.  McLeod,  in  Report  0/ Proceedings 
of  the  Second  General  Council  of  the  Presbyterian  Alliance,  p.  445. 


342  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

Christ,"  he  asked  of  his  brother  ministers,  "to  do  more 
preaching  to  children?  I  think  of  nothing  in  my  own 
ministry  with  so  much  regret,  and  so  Httle  respect,  as  I 
do  of  my  omissions  just  here.  We  get  occupied  with 
great  and  high  subjects  that  require  a  handhng  too  heavy 
and  deep  for  children,  and  become  so  fooled  in  our  esti- 
mate of  what  we  do,  that  we  call  it  coming  down  when 
we  undertake  to  preach  to  children ;  whereas  it  is  coming 
up,  rather,  out  of  the  subterranean  hells,  darknesses,  in- 
tricacies, dungeon-like  profundities  of  grown-up  sin,  ta 
speak  to  the  bright  daylight  creatures  of  trust  and  sweet 
affinities  and  easy  convictions.  And  to  speak  to  these 
fitly,  so  as  not  to  thrust  in  Jesus  on  them  as  by  force,  but 
have  him  win  his  own  dear  way,  by  his  childhood,  wait- 
ing for  his  cross,  tenderly,  purely,  and  without  art — oh, 
how  fine,  how  very  precious,  the  soul  equipment  it  will 
require  of  us!  I  think  I  see  it  now  clearly:  we  do  not 
preach  well  to  adults,  because  we  do  not  preach,  or  learn 
how  to  preach,  to  children.  .  .  .  God's  world  contains 
grown-up  people  and  children  together :  our  world  con- 
tains grown-up  people  only.  And  preaching  only  to 
these,  who  are  scarcely  more  than  half  the  total  number, 
it  is  much  as  if  we  were  to  set  our  ministry  to  a  preaching 
only  to  bachelors.  We  dry  up  in  this  manner,  and  our 
thought  wizens  in  a  certain  pomp  of  pretense  that  is  hol- 
low, and  not  gospel.  The  very  certain  fact  is,  that  our 
schools  of  theology  will  never  make  qualified  preachers 
till  they  discover  the  existence  of  children." 

These  latter  words  of  Dr.  Bushnell,  be  it  remembered, 
were  spoken  before  theological  seminaries  generally  had 
given  this  phase  of  homiletics  any  special  prominence. 
But  in  their  connection  these  words  may  still  serve  to 


ITS  DIFFICULTIES.  343 

stimulate  theological  students  to  avail  themselves  the 
more  earnestly  of  all  the  privileges  in  this  line  now  set 
before  them  in  the  course  of  their  theological  training. 

A  recognition  of  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  learning 
how  to  preach  to  children  is  in  itself  a  stimulus  and  an 
incentive  to  such  attainment  on  the  part  of  one  who  is 
preparing  for  the  ministry,  of  which  this  kind  of  preach- 
ing is  so  important  a  part.  And  as  to  the  possibility  of 
learning  to  preach  to  children,  there  can  be  no  reasonable 
doubt  in  the  mind  of  one  who  realizes  that  the  work  is 
divinely  commanded,  and  that  the  preacher  is  divinely 
set  to  it.  The  truth  on  this  point  was  concisely  stated 
by  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Cotton  Smith,  when  he  said,  on 
this  subject:  "Jesus  would  not  have  imposed  upon  his 
ministers  a  duty  which  he  had  not  given  them  the  ability 
to  perform."  *  This  thought  was  similarly  expressed  by 
the  Rev.  Alexander  Fletcher,  when  he  said  of  the  obvious 
difficulty  of  this  work:  "This  is,  however,  no  reason  for 
shrinking  from  the  duty.  Is  it  a  duty?  Who  can  deny 
it?  If  the  ministers  of  Christ  enter  upon  its  discharge. 
He  will  assuredly  impart  grace  to  perform  it.  He  sends 
none  upon  a  warfare  on  their  own  charges."^ 

The  Rev.  Dr.  S.  G.  Green,  writing  on  this  subject 
nearly  forty  years  ago,  said  of  the  difficulty  of  preaching 
to  children:  "But  this  difficulty,  like  others,  is  to  be 
surmounted  by  study  and  practice.  It  is  true  that  the 
natural  gift  which  we  call  genius  is  something;  but 
earnestness  and  assiduity  are  at  least  as  much.  Few 
men,  whose  hearts  are  set  upon  the  ministry,  decline 
being  preachers  because  they  cannot  be  pulpit  orators. 

*  Report  pf  New  York  Sunday-school  Insfitute  (1868)  p.  112. 
*  Preface  to  Lectures  Adapted  to  the  Capacity  of  Children. 


344  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN. 

And,  in  like  manner,  none  need  decline  being  preachers 
to  children  because  they  do  not  hope  to  attain  eminence 
[as  such].  The  excuse  '  I  have  no  talent  for  it '  has  been 
made  and  accepted  far  too  readily ;  as  though  success  in 
this  department  of  pastoral  toil  were  not  to  be  attained  by 
the  methods  which  ensure  efficiency  in  others."  ^  And 
much  more  recently  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  A.  Broadus,  in 
his  elaborate  Treatise  on  the  Preparation  and  Delivery  of 
Sermons,  has  spoken  with  like  effect  on  the  same  subject. 
"  Every  one  notices,"  he  says,  "  how  few  persons  succeed 
decidedly  well  in  speaking  to  children.  But  many  preach- 
ers possess  greater  power  in  this  respect  than  they  have 
ever  exercised,  because  they  have  never  devoted  to  the 
subject  much  either  of  reflection,  observation,  or  heedful 
practice.  Examples  may  be  found  of  men  who  for  years 
considered  that  they  had  no  talent  for  speaking  to  chil- 
dren, and  whose  attempts  were  always  comparative  fail- 
ures, and  yet  who  afterwards  became  very  popular  and 
useful  in  this  important  department  of  preaching."^ 

In  short,  the  very  fact  that  proper  preaching  to  children 
is  one  of  the  highest  attainments  of  homiletical  power,  and 
that  comparatively  few  preachers  have  achieved  marked 
success  in  that  line,  coupled  with  the  other  fact  that  the 
duty  of  preaching  to  children  is  inseparable  from  the 
mission  of  the  minister  of  Christ,  should  incite  and  stimu- 
late the  theological  student  to  prepare  himself  for  the 
work  wherein  so  many  have  fallen  short,  or  have  lam- 
entably failed.  In  this  direction  lies  the  path  of  hopeful 
progress  before  the  young  preachers  of  to-day. 

1  Introduction  to  Addresses  to  Children. 
2  A  Treatise  on  the  Preparation  and  Delivery  of  Sermons,  p.  114  f. 


LECTURE   X. 


rREACHING  TO  CHILDREN:    ITS  PRINCIPLES 
AND  ITS  METHODS. 


X. 

PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN:     ITS  PRINCIPLES 
AND  ITS  METHODS. 

Hints  to  the  Children's  Preacher. — A  Fresh,  Strong  Thought  Es- 
sential in  Every  Sermon. — A  Child's  Capacity  for  Great  Think- 
ing.—  Need  of  an  Obviously  Fitting  Text. —  Of  a  Weil-Defined 
Outline  Plan. —  Of  Simplicity  of  Language. — Of  Clearness  of 
Statement. — Of  Explicitness  of  Application. — How  to  Prepare 
for  this  Work. —  How  to  Seat  the  Hearers. —  How  to  Secure 
Their  Co-work. — How  to  Guard  Against  Tiresomeness. — Con- 
cluding Thoughts.  —  Christianity  Unique  in  its  Exaltation  of 
Childhood. 

It  would  not  be  a  fair  treatment  of  any  practical  ques- 
tion, to  emphasize  the  importance  and  the  difficulties  of 
a  given  line  of  work,  and  then  to  leave  it  without  a  proffer 
of  help  or  suggestion  in  the  direction  of  its  wise  methods. 
Hence,  without  attempting  to  cover,  in  any  sense,  the 
ground  of  this  portion  of  the  homiletical  field,  I  am  im- 
pelled, by  a  sense  of  simple  fairness,  if  nothing  more,  to 
venture  the  suggestion  of  a  few  primary  points  which  my 
observations  and  experiences  have  led  me  to  deem  worthy 
of  consideration  by  him  who  would  undertake  the  deli- 
cate, the  difficult,  and  the  eminently  important,  work  of 
preaching  to  children.^ 

^  The  paucity  of  hints  in  this  line  of  pulpit  effort  in  the  standard  works  on 
homiletics,  is  noteworthy  as  an  indication  of  its  general  undervaluing  in  the 
minds  of  preachers  and  of  their  trainers. 

347 


348  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

To  begin  with,  the  thought,  or  theme,  or  topic  of  a 
sermon  to  children,  ought  to  be,  as  I  have  already  sug- 
gested, one  which  has  value  in  and  of  itself,  and  which  is 
worthy  of  the  preacher's  absorbed  interest  apart  from  its 
immediate  use  in  an  address  to  the  children  of  his  charge. 
A  very  common  mistake,  and  a  very  serious  one,  on  the 
part  of  those  who  discourse  to  children,  is  in  supposing 
that  the  manner  and  the  phraseology  are  of  chief  impor- 
tance in  such  a  work ;  that,  in  fact,  the  primal  thought, 
or  the  underlying  conception,  of  an  address,  is  of  less 
importance  to  children  than  to  adults.  An  audience  of 
children  is  a  discerning  as  well  as  an  appreciative  audi- 
ence. It  is  composed  of  bright,  active  minds,  not  yet 
trained  to  indifference  or  to  listless  inattention.  It  is,  as 
a  rule,  an  audience  less  easily  imposed  on  by  unmeaning 
platitudes,  and  more  intelligently  impatient  of  them,  than 
an  audience  of  grown  persons. 

A  child  values  a  fresh,  strong  thought ;  and  he  is  quick 
to  catch  it  when  it  is  fairly  before  him.  Nor  is  a  child's 
range  of  thought  so  limited,  or  its  channel  so  shallow,  as 
many  would  seem  to  suppose.  A  child  can  comprehend 
the  profoundest  truths  of  theology  not  merely  as  well  as, 
but  better  than,  an  adult  of  the  same  native  qualities  of 
mind  and  character.^  In  other  words,  the  great  thoughts 
of  God  are  better  apprehended  by  the  human  mind  in  its 
childhood  than  in  its  maturer  years;  and  the  preacher  who 
can  grasp  those  thoughts  most  clearly  for  himself,  and 
can  make  them  clear  to  others,  will  be  surer  of  a  hearty 
welcome  to  them  by  an  audience  of  intelligent  children 
than  by  any  other  persons  to  whom  he  may  present  them. 

1  See  pp.  217-219,  ante. 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  349 

Hence  it  is  that  he  who  would  preach  well  to  children 
must  not  think  of  lowering  his  plane  of  thought  for  their 
benefit,  but  must  recognize  his  duty  of  rising  to  his  best 
and  highest  plane  of  thinking,  in  order  to  think  a  thought 
which  is  worthy  of  their  thinking,  and  which  they  will 
perceive  to  be  thus  worthy.^ 

Take  such  a  truth,  for  example,  as  the  immortality  of 
the  soul,  as  the  resurrection  of  our  Lord,  or  as  the  omni- 
presence of  God;  who  will  doubt  that  that  truth  can  be 
more  easily  grasped  in  its  entirety  by  a  simple-hearted, 
trustful  child,  than  even  by  a  devout  adult  whose  ma- 
turer  mind  finds  rational  difficulties  in  the  way  of  its 
acceptance,  such  as  the  child  is  yet  free  from.  A  Con- 
necticut clergyman  gave  me  an  illustration  in  this  line 
out  of  his  personal  experience.  Riding  along  a  country 
road  on  the  borders  of  his  parish,  he  stopped  to  speak 
to  a  boy  whom  he  saw  there.  After  asking  the  boy's 
name,  he  attempted  a  little  pastoral  catechising,  after  this 
sort :  "  Do  you  know  who  made  you,  my  boy  ?  "  "  Yes, 
sir.  God  made  me."  "Where  is  God?"  "  In  heaven, 
sir."  "  Isn't  God  anywhere  else  ?  "  "I  didn't  know  that 
he  was,  sir."  "  Well,  my  boy,  God  is  not  only  in  heaven, 
but  he  is  everywhere  at  the  same  time;  and  he  can  see 
you  always,  wherever  you  are."  That  was  a  new  thought 
to  that  boy.  It  impressed  him  as  a  new  thought.  Point- 
ing to  a  close-faced  heavy  stone  wall,  near  which  he  stood, 
the  boy  said  inquiringly :  "  Can  God  see  through  that 
stone  wall?"  "Yes,  indeed,"  answered  the  pastor,  "God 
can  see  through  that  wall.  God  can  go  through  that 
wall."     "  Go  ?  "  responded  the  boy,  instantly.    "  Go  f    I 

1  See  Bushnell's  statement  on  this  point,  at  p.  341  f.,  ante. 


35©  PREACHING   TO  CHILD  REN: 

don't  see  how  God  can  go  at  all,  if  he's  all  over  to  begin 
with  !  "  "  Ah  !  "  said  that  pastor  to  me,  as  he  told  this 
story,  "  that  boy  had  made  the  truth  of  God's  omni- 
presence more  really  his  own,  in  those  two  minutes,  than 
I  had  made  it  mine  in  my  thirty  years  in  the  ministry." 
And  it  was  because  he  was  a  child  that  that  boy  received 
the  truth  of  God  as  a  child.  To  the  minister,  God's  omni- 
presence was  a  doctrine ;  to  the  child,  it  was  a  reality. 

The  man  who  remembers  his  own  childhood's  thoughts 
knows  that  he  grappled  very  early  with  some  of  the  great 
problems  of  theology  and  of  metaphysics  that  are  yet  a 
bewilderment  to  him ;  and  he  who,  as  a  parent,  has  at- 
tempted to  meet  the  keen  questions  of  his  children  on 
those  same  problems,  and  on  others  which  he  had  never 
considered  before,  has  found  that  his  greater  difficulties 
are  in  his  own  limitations  of  knowledge,  rather  than  in  • 
the  inability  of  his  children  to  receive  explanations  which 
he  is  competent  to  proffer  them.  When  a  father's  little 
child  asked  him,  seriously,  "  Why  did  you  blow  at  that 
candle,  papa  ?  "  the  father's  answer  came  back  quick  and 
confident :  "  To  put  out  its  light,  my  dear  child."  But 
when,  as  if  in  instinctive  recognition  of  the  imperishable- 
ness  of  matter,  the  second  question  came,  "  Where  did 
the  light  go,  when  it  went  out,  papa?"  the  father  was 
inclined  to  realize  afresh  that  it  is  so  much  easier  to  sat- 
isfy—  with  surface  statements  —  grown  folks  than  chil- 
dren, in  their  search  for  knowledge.  And  this  is  a  truth 
which  the  children's  preacher  needs  always  to  bear  in 
mind  in  his  planning  a  sermon  for  their  benefit.  He  is 
more  likely  to  fall  below  their  standard  of  thinking  than 
to  rise  above  it. 

Turn,  if  you  will,  to  the  more  striking  themes  of  the 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  35  I 

great  preachers  of  the  ages,  and  you  will  see  how  rarely 
one  of  these  themes  is  in  itself  beyond  the  comprehension 
of  a  child's  mind, — provided  only  it  be  stated  in  words 
which  are  fairly  within  a  child's  attainments  of  language. 
Even  as  they  stand,  the  themes  of  many  of  these  master- 
pieces of  homiletical  literature  are  such  as  a  child  would 
grasp  quite  as  quickly  as  an  adult.  Thus,  for  example, 
Horace  Bushnell's  sermons  on  "Unconscious  Influence," 
and  "  Every  Man's  Life  a  Plan  of  God,"  and  "  Living  to 
God  in  Small  Things;"^  Lyman  Beecher's  sermon  on 
"The  Bible  a  Code  of  Laws;"^  Andrew  Melville's,  on 
"  The  Power  of  Wickedness  and  of  Righteousness  to  Re- 
produce Themselves;  "  Jeremy  Taylor's,  on  "The  Foolish 
Exchange;"  John  Calvin's,  on  "Bearing  the  Reproach 
of  Christ;"  Hugh  Latimer's  "  Sermon  of  the  Plow;"  and 
so  all  the  way  back  to  Cyril  of  Jerusalem's  sermon  on 
"The  Creator  Seen  in  the  Creations;"  and  TertuUian's 
on  "The  Duty  and  Rewards  of  Patience."  ^ 

This  fact  of  the  fitness  of  great  truths  to  the  capacity 
and  the  tastes  of  children,  has  been  recognized,  and  acted 
on,  by  some  of  the  best  of  modern  preachers  to  children, 
in  their  selection  of  sermon  themes  for  the  little  ones 
whom  they  addressed.  Thus,  Dr.  John  Todd  gave  a  chil- 
dren's sermon  on  the  theme,  "  Great  Events  Hang  on 
Little  Things,"  from  the  text,^  "A  certain  man  drew  a  bow 
at  a  venture ; "  ^  and  another,  on  "  What  Faith  is,  and  what 
its  Use  is,"  from  the  text,^  "  Without  faith  it  is  impossible 

^  Sermons  for  the  Ne%o  Life,  pp.  9-28,  186-205,  2B2-303. 
^  Sermons  Delivered  on  Various  Occasions,  pp.  138-181.     See,  also,  Water- 
bury 's  Sketches  of  Eloquent  Preachers,  p.  56. 

*  See  Fish's  Masterpieces  of  Pulpit  Eloquence.  ^  i  Kings  22:  34. 

5  LecMtres  to  Children,  pp.  146  163.  ^  Heb.  11  :  6. 


352  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

to  please  him;"^  Dr.  Andrew  Peabody  gave  one  on 
"  False  Shame,"  from  the  text,^  "  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the 
gospel  of  Christ;  "^  Dr.  William  S.  Plumer  gave  one  on 
"  The  Worth  of  the  Soul,"  from  the  text,*  "  Ye  are  of 
more  value  than  many  sparrows."  ^  One  of  Dean  Stanley's 
sermons  to  children  was  on  a  theme  which  might  practi- 
cally be  stated  as  The  Loving  Call  of  Jesus  to  Nobler 
Living.  It  was  from  the  text  Talitha  Cuviif  which  he 
translated  as  "  My  little  lamb,  iny  pet  lamb,  rise  up."  ^ 
Wellnigh  every  sermon  to  children  by  Dr.  Samuel  Cox, 
in  his  published  volume,  is  based  on  a  Bible  theme  which 
is  fresh  enough  and  strong  enough  for  hearers  of  any  age. 
Thus,  for  a  single  example,  "  The  Man  who  was  too  Busy 
to  do  his  Duty,"  from  the  text,^  "And  as  thy  servant  was 
busy  here  and  there,  he  was  gone."^  In  a  children's  ser- 
mon by  Dr.  Munger,  entitled  "  The  Good,  the  Better,  the 
Best,"  the  main  thought  is  the  essential  moral  difference 
between  illustrative  teachings  from  Muhammad,  Cyrus, 
and  our  Lord  Jesus ;  it  being  good  to  feed  our  souls  as 
well  as  our  bodies;  it  being  better  to  share  our  good  with 
others ;  it  being  best  to  give  as  unto  God,  without  a 
thought  of  personal  gain  or  return.^" 

And  so  it  ought  to  be  with  every  sermon  to  children. 
Its  thought,  or  theme,  or  topic,  should  be  worthy  of  a  full 
man's  interest,  if  it  is  to  be  reckoned  worthy  of  a  child's 
keener  perceptions  and  more  fastidious  tastes.  Never, 
never,  never  should  a  preacher  to  children  expect  to  com- 

1  Lectures  to  Children,  pp.  63-80.  ''■  Rom.  i :  16. 

^  Sermons  for  Children,  pp.  40-57.  *  Matt.  10:  31. 

6  Short  Sermons  to  Little  Children,  pp.  54-60.  ^  Mark  5  :  41. 

'  Sermons  for  Children,  pp.  87-94.  ^    i  Kings  20  :  40. 

9  The  Bird's  A^est,  pp.  222-237.  '"  Lamps  and  Paths,  pp.  icip-iig. 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  353 

mand  the  attention,  and  hold  the  interest,  and  retain  the 
respectful  regard,  of  his  young  hearers,  by  calling  them 
his  "dear  little  children,"  and  assuring  them  that  he  is 
"  very  glad  to  see  "  them,  and  that  he  wants  them  to  be 
"  good  boys  and  good  girls,"  and  telling  them  pretty  little 
stories.  Yet,  as  Dr.  Broadus  expresses  it,  "  a  good  many 
ministers  do,  as  it  were,  play  the  organ  in  ordinary  ser- 
mons, and  in  addressing  children  play  the  banjo  or  the 
jewsharp;"'  when,  in  truth,  as  he  adds,  "the  two  classes 
of  discourses  should  be  on  the  same  gamut,  without  essen- 
tial incongruity,  and  with  no  difficulty  in  making  the 
transition  from  one  to  the  other."  Unless,  indeed,  a 
preacher  has  a  thought  which  as  a  thought  fills  his  own 
mind  fully  for  the  time  being,  and  which  he  wishes  his 
young  hearers  to  become  possessed  of,  he  lacks  the  first 
essential  of  preparedness  for  preaching  to  children;  how- 
ever he  might  succeed  in  satisfying  a  congregation  of 
adults  with  his  pleasantries  or  his  platitudes. 

A  good  illustration  of  the  practicability  of  a  preacher's 
interesting  children  in  a  sublime  truth  which  is  worthy 
of  his  own  absorbing  interest,  has  been  brought  to  my 
notice  as  occurring  since  I  began  the  writing  of  this  lec- 
ture. In  the  chapel  of  the  Episcopal  Divinity  School,  in 
Philadelphia,  a  small  congregation  has  been  newly  gath- 
ered from  its  neighborhood  in  the  western  suburbs  of 
the  city.  Naturally,  of  course,  the  starting-point  of  this 
congregation  is  a  Sunday-school,  together  with  the  nu- 
cleus of  the  divinity  students,  and  such  families  as  choose 
to  avail  themselves  of  the  privileges  of  the  services  there 
conducted.     The  Sunday  after  Christmas  Day,  the  past 

1  Introduction  (p.  12)  to  T.  T.  Eaton's  Talks  to  Children. 
23 


354  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

winter,  was  a  stormy  one.  The  preacher  for  the  occa- 
sion, at  this  chapel  service,  was  the  Rev.  Dr.  Daniel  R. 
Goodwin;  now  Professor  of  Systematic  Divinity  in  that 
institution ;  formerly  provost  of  the  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania, president  of  Trinity  College,  and  a  professor  in 
Bowdoin  College;  an  instructor  in  the  last-named  insti- 
tution, indeed,  so  long  ago  as  when  the  poet  Longfellow 
was  an  undergraduate  there.  He  is  a  man  of  patriarchal 
appearance,  of  wide  and  varied  learning,  of  pronounced 
theological  convictions,  and,  withal,  of  a  lovely  and  win- 
some Christian  spirit. 

His  sermon  for  the  occasion  was  a  careful  and  thorough 
treatment  of  the  doctrine  of  the  Incarnation.  Seeing  that 
his  audience  was  composed  largely  of  boys,  he  consider- 
ately adapted  his  discourse  to  their  capacities,  yet  without 
changing  its  subject,  or  the  general  tenor  of  its  treatment. 
It  was  a  doctrinal  theme,  and  its  treatment  involved  inci- 
dental references  to  the  historic  variations  in  the  doctrines 
of  the  kcnosis ;  but  it  was  a  theme  in  which  he  had  a 
profound  personal  interest,  and  of  which  he  was  a  master. 
He  presented  it  in  simplicity  of  speech,  and  in  sympa- 
thetic directness.  As  the  theme  possessed  him  more  and 
more,  in  his  contemplation  of  it,  and  in  his  desire  and 
endeavor  to  impress  it,  in  all  its  fullness  and  preciousness, 
upon  the  tender  minds  of  his  young  hearers,  he  rose  to 
his  loftiest  heights  of  thought  and  expression  in  its  elab- 
oration ;  yet  he  rose  to  no  height  whither  he  might  not 
be  followed  by  the  warm  hearts  and  the  vivid  imaginings 
of  his  young  hearers,  even  more  easily  than  by  the  cooler 
heads  and  the  more  rigid  reasonings  of  adult  listeners. 
He  held  the  attention  of  those  young  hearers  from  first 
to  last.     They  comprehended  his  main  thought.     They 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  355 

hung  upon  his  words.  Their  eyes  fairly  snapped  with 
deHght  over  some  of  his  keen  distinctions.  Moreover,  it 
was  the  testimony  of  the  Dean  of  the  Faculty,  and  of  the 
students  of  the  Divinity  School  in  this  rainy  morning 
audience,  that  never  in  his  class-room,  or  in  any  ordinary 
pulpit  service,  had  Dr.  Goodwin  seemed  so  grand  as  a 
preacher,  or  so  effective  as  a  teacher.  That  sermon,  in- 
deed, was  more  of  a  sermon  for  the  mind  and  heart  of 
hearers  of  any  age  or  any  measure  of  attainment,  because 
it  had  been  raised  to  the  standard  of  childhood,  instead 
of  being  kept  down  on  the  plane  of  adults — in  its  presen- 
tation of  the  sublimest  mystery  of  God's  truth.  And  this 
is  but  a  single  illustration  of  what  might  be,  and  of  what 
ought  to  be,  the  state  of  things  in  the  best  preaching  by 
the  best  preachers  to  hearers  young  or  old. 

When  his  sermon  theme  is  well  defined  in  a  preacher's 
mind,  the  Bible  text  which  is  chosen  for  its  presentation 
to  children  should  be  one  which  explicitly  teaches,  or 
which  fairly  suggests,  that  theme;  and  one,  also,  which  is 
in  a  form  of  words  easily  apprehended  and  easily  remem- 
bered by  children.  If,  indeed,  as  somie  would  think,  the 
text  should  be  chosen  before  the  theme,  it  is  still  impor- 
tant that  the  text  be  one  which  a  child  can  see  the  mean- 
ing of,  as  well  as  its  bearing  on  the  sermon  theme,  and 
one  which  he  can  fasten  in  his  mind  without  difficulty. 
The  texts  already  cited,  as  used  with  good  effect  by 
preachers  to  children,  are  illustrative  of  this  point  A 
text  which  is  of  involved  phraseology,  or  of  obscure 
meaning,  is  peculiarly  inappropriate  to  a  child's  sermon. 
If,  indeed,  there  is  to  be  a  surprise  in  the  use  of  the  text, 
that  use  should  be  one  which  a  keen-eyed  child  will  see 
the  fairness  of  when  it  is  announced  to  him. 


356  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

A  child's  sermon  ought  to  have  a  well-defined,  clearly- 
stated,  easily-remembered  outline  plan,  or  skeleton.  Not 
only  ought  the  sermon  to  be  arranged  logically,  —  for  a 
child's  mind  is  a  logical  mind, — but  the  logical  arrange- 
ment of  the  sermon  ought  to  be  announced  to  the  child, 
as  a  help  to  his  understanding  and  to  his  retention  of  its 
main  points.  Here  is  where  many  a  preacher  to  children 
fails  to  meet  the  requirements  of  his  work.  He  pours  out 
good  things  loosely  before  his  child  hearers,  but  gives 
them  no  basket  to  carry  away  the  good  things  in.  Just 
here,  on  the  other  hand,  is  where  many  a  preacher  to 
children  has  had  his  chief  power  as  a  helpful  preacher  to 
children.  Good  Dr.  Tyng  was  not  always  felicitous  in 
his  choice  of  texts,  nor  simple  in  his  language,  in  this 
line  of  pulpit  work ;  but  he  was  pretty  sure  to  make  his 
sermon  outline  for  children  one  which  the  children  could 
fasten  in  their  minds.  I  remember  a  children's  sermon 
from  him,  of  fifteen  years  ago,  which  illustrates  this  point. 
His  text  was  the  first  two  verses  of  the  thirty-fourth  chap- 
ter of  Second  Chronicles,  describing  the  well-doing  of  the 
young  king  Josiah.  In  his  incisive  manner,  and  with  his 
abrupt  tones  of  voice.  Dr.  Tyng  said:  "There  are  four 
things  told  of  King  Josiah  in  these  verses,  which  I  want 
you  to  notice.  First,  What  he  did;  second,  Why  he  did 
it ;  third,  When  he  did  it ;  and  fourth.  How  he  did  it." 
Each  of  these  points  was  then  tellingly  pressed  by  the 
preacher.  After  showing  that  wJiat  Josiah  did,  was  to 
follow  a  good  example;  that  why  he' did  it,  was  because 
it  was  right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord ;  that  %v]ic7i  he  did 
it,  was  while  he  was  yet  young, — the  Doctor  came  to  the 
fourth  and  closing  point  of  his  discourse.  "And  now," 
he  said,  "  the  question  is,  Hoiv  did  King  Josiah  do  this 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  357 

good  thing  ?  Hozv  did  he  do  it  ?  Why,  he  just  did  it. 
That  is  the  only  way  any  good  thing  is  ever  done.  When 
you've  got  a  thing  to  do,  do  it."  It  was  the  outHne  which 
made  that  sermon  of  Dr.  Tyng's.  It  was  the  outhne 
which  enabled  me  to  take  it  away  with  me,  and  to  carry 
it  in  my  mind  these  fifteen  years.  And  so  far  I  was  a 
sharer  with  the  children  of  that  congregation  in  the  bene- 
fits of  a  good  sermon  outline. 

Even  a  very  brief  sermon  to  children  can  have  a  clearly 
defined  and  helpful  outline.  In  one  of  Mr.  Hill's  "  five- 
minute  sermons  "  on  "  Walking  with  God,"  from  the  text,^ 
"  Enoch  walked  with  God,"  the  outline  shows  that  walk- 
ing with  God  involves  nearness  to  God,  converse  with 
God,  friendship  with  God,  continuance  with  God,  and  that 
it  results  in  likeness  to  God.^  If,  indeed,  but  a  single 
point  be  made  for  the  children's  benefit,  as  a  digression 
from  the  preacher's  discourse  to  adult  hearers,  that  point 
should  be  so  well  defined  that  the  children  can  make  it 
their  own  in  the  very  form  in  which  it  has  found  shape 
in  the  preacher's  mind.  A  sermon  skeleton  may  be  in- 
ferred in  a  sermon  to  adults;  in  a  sermon  to  children,  it 
ought  to  be  pointed  out. 

So  far,  a  preacher's  preparation  for  a  sermon  to  chil- 
dren is  that  which  would  be  equally  appropriate  for  many 
a  sermon  to  adults.  But  it  is  at  this  point,  after  his 
theme  and  his  text  and  his  sermon  outline  are  ready,  that 
a  preacher's  peculiar  preparation  for  preaching  to  children 
as  children  must  begin.  Now  it  is  that  he  must  choose 
language  and  illustrations,  and  must  decide  on  points  of 
application,  that  will  enable  him  to  transfer  the  thought 

1  Gen.  S  :  24.  2  The  Children's  Sermon,  pp.  50-53. 


358  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

of  his  mind  to  the  minds  of  his  children  hearers,  and  that 
will  tend  to  make  the  truth,  which  for  the  time  possesses 
his  entire  being,  a  vital  force  in  their  young  beings.  And 
here  it  is  that  the  main  difficulty  of  right  preaching  to 
children  is  found.  The  preacher  has  what  the  children 
need;  but  how  shall  he  get  it  to  them?  That  is  the  ques- 
tion ?  "Wherefore  let  him  that  speaketh  in  a  tongue, 
pray  that  he  may  interpret."^ 

A  great  thought  loses  none  of  its  force  by  being  ex- 
pressed in  simple  language,  and  illustrated  in  familiar 
figures;  whereas  by  such  expression  and  illustration  it 
gains  a  hold  on  many  who  would  otherwise  fail  to  com- 
prehend it.  Take,  for  example,  that  great  thought  of 
Chalmers's  famous  sermon,  "  The  Expulsive  Power  of  a 
New  Affection."^  In  its  present  phrasing  it  would  be 
obscure  to  many;  but  if  stated  as  "A  new  delight  crowds 
out  old  worries,"  or  as,  "  Having  something  to  live  for 
makes  one  forget  petty  trifles,"  and  illustrated  by  the 
figure  of  a  child  forgetting  his  grief  over  a  broken  toy,  in 
the  enjoyment  of  a  live  pony  bought  for  him  by  his  father, 
or  by  the  story  of  a  lad  lifted  above  his  old  interest  in  pet 
rabbits  by  a  decision  to  enlist  as  a  drummer  boy  in  his 
country's  army  in  war  time,  then  even  a  child  could  un- 
derstand its  meaning.  And  from  such  a  familiar  starting- 
point  the  thought  itself  could  be  expanded  to  any  de- 
sirable sweep  without  carrying  it  beyond  the  young 
hearer's  measure  of  intelligence. 

Simplicity  of  language  is  by  no  means  babyishness  of 
language.  It  is  important,  indeed,  in  addressing  children, 
not  to  seem  to  be  talking  doivn  to  them.    It  is  only  neces- 

'  1  Cor.  14:  13.  ^  See  Fish's  Masterpieces,  II.,  320-335. 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  359 

sary  to  employ  words  which  they  are  accustomed  to, 
and  which  they  know  the  meaning  of.  "  Our  words  must 
be  the  simplest  possible,"  says  Dr.  Green.  "  But,"  he 
adds  by  way  of  sensible  caution,  "  let  us  not  imagine  that 
we  have  simplified  our  language  when  we  have  only  re- 
duced the  size  of  our  words.  The  measure  of  simplicity 
is  not  linear  measure."  ^  Yet,  as  Dr.  McKee  says  in  this 
connection,  "  there  is  great  power  in  monosyllables."  ^ 
He  ascribes  a  large  measure  of  his  success  as  a  children's 
preacher  to  his  careful  avoidance  of  Latin  derivatives,  and 
to  his  use  of  Anglo-Saxon  monosyllables,  in  his  sermons 
to  children.  Dr.  Cox  says,  similarly :  "  In  rewriting 
these  sermons  [to  children]  for  the  press,  I  have  been 
amused  to  come  on  clusters  of  twenty  and  thirty,  or  even 
forty  and  fifty,  words  of  one  syllable."'  Yet  this  special 
feature  in  his  sermons  was  all  unintentional  on  Dr.  Cox's 
part;  his  effort  being  merely  to  express  his  thoughts  "in 
the  simplest  and  most  colloquial  English"*  he  could 
command ;  he  writing  and  re-writing  his  sermons  for  the 
little  folks  until  he  was  measurably  satisfied  with  his  effort 
to  be  simple  and  clear  in  the  expression  of  his  thoughts. 
The  Rev.  Dr.  William  S.  Plumer  had  prominence  as  a 
theologian  and  as  an  exegete,  and  in  those  lines  of  thought 
and  speech  his  language  was  that  which  would  naturally 
be  looked  for  there;  but  in  his  published  volume  of  "Short 
Sermons  to  Little  Children,"  Dr.  Plumer's  language  is 
mainly  simple  Anglo-Saxon;  monosyllables  predomi- 
nating without  any  sign  of  an  effort  at  their  selection. 
Nor  would  any  one  who  knew  him  in  the  later  years  of 

1  Preface  to  Addresses  to  Children,  p.  12. 

*  Report  of  the  Fifth  National  Sunday-school  Convention,  p.  77. 

8  Preface  to  The  Bird's  A'est,  p.  viii.  *  /iid.,  p.  vii. 


360  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

his  life  claim  that  Dr.  Plumer's  power  as  a  preacher  to 
adults  was  lessened  by  his  habit  of  simplifying  his  lan- 
guage when  preaching  to  children. 

Would  any  one  question  the  high  thinking  or  the 
strong  preaching  of  Frederick  Maurice?  It  was  while 
he  was  in  the  autumnal  ripeness  of  his  great  powers,  and 
while  he  was  professor  of  Moral  Philosophy  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Cambridge,  that  he  was  accustomed,  on  Sun- 
days, to  go  out  into  a  neighborhood  of  plain  people,  and 
address  the  children  there  by  way  of  making  clearer  to 
them  the  all-essential  truths  which  are  at  the  basis  of 
Christian  faith  and  of  the  Christian  life.  It  is  the  sub- 
stance of  those  addresses  to  children  which  are  gathered 
into  his  little  volume  on  the  Lord's  Prayer,  the  Creed, 
the  Commandments,  and  the  Order  of  the  Scriptures, — 
a  volume  which,  as  an  example  of  fresh  and  vigorous 
thought  in  uniform  simplicity  of  language,  is  as  near  a 
faultless  model  as  any  volume  with  which  I  am  acquainted. 

Observe,  for  example,  the  way  in  which  Maurice  be- 
gins his  explanations  of  the  Lord's  Prayer :  "A  few  poor 
Jews,  chiefly  fishermen,  came  to  their  Master,  Jesus  Christ, 
and  said,  'Lord,  teach  us  to  pray.'  He  said  to  them, 
'After  this  manner  pray  ye.'  And  then  he  spoke  that 
prayer  which  we  call  '  The  Lord's  Prayer.'  After  this 
manner  Englishmen  have  prayed  for  more  than  a  thou- 
sand years.  After  this  manner  Frenchmen,  Spaniards, 
Germans,  Russians,  pray.  They  speak  in  different  lan- 
guages, but  the  sense  is  the  same.  Let  us  pray." '  Again, 
note  Avhat  he  says  on  the  first  two  words  of  the  Creed : 
" '  I  believe.'     What  is  this,  I  believe  ?     I  look  into  your 

1  The  Lord' s  Prayer,  the  Creed,  and  the  Commartdtnents ,  p.  16  f. 


ITS  PRIACIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  36 1 

faces.  I  sec  them.  But  I  do  not  see  what  is  passing  in 
you.  I  do  not  see  what  you  mean.  I  do  not  see  what 
you  arc.  When  I  say,  '  That  boy  is  honest  and  true,'  I 
speak  what  I  beheve,  not  what  I  see.  When  you  speak' 
words  to  mc,  I  say,  *  I  believe  those  words,'  or  '  I  believe 
you  who  speak  those  words;'  I  believe  you  are  telling 
me  what  is  in  you,  that  you  are  not  speaking  one  thing 
with  your  lips  when  another  is  in  your  hearts.  It  is 
much  more  to  you  that  I  should  believe  you  than  that  I 
should  see  you.  My  belief  brings  me  much  nearer  to 
you  than  my  sight.  We  do  not  know  each  other  because 
we  see  each  other.  When  we  believe  in  each  other  we 
begin  to  know."^ 

And  it  is  in  this  style  that  Maurice  goes  on,  with  his 
teachings  concerning  each  clause  of  the  Lord's  Prayer, 
each  article  of  the  "Apostles'  Creed,"  each  commandment 
of  the  Decalogue,  and  each  main  group  or  section  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  His  thought  is  such  as  to  command 
the  interest  of  the  profoundest  Christian  thinker.  The 
expression  of  his  thought  is  such  as  to  justify  his  antici- 
pation, when  he  says,  "  The  language  of  it,  I  hope,  will  be 
intelligible  to  any  child."  That  the  power  thus  exhibited 
is  a  higher  attainment  than  that  shown  in  any  presenta- 
tion of  these  same  truths  to  maturer  minds  in  language 
less  simple  and  clear,  would  seem  obvious.  In  such  an 
exhibit  as  this,  indeed,  it  is  that  we  are  helped  to  realize 
that  he  who  receives  the  truths  of  God's  kingdom  in  child- 
likeness,  and  who  imparts  them  to  children  and  to  the 
child-like  in  child-language,  the  same  is  greatest  in  the 
kingdom  of  heaven. 

1  The  Ldrd's  Prayer,  the  Creed,  and  the  Commandments,  p.  30. 


362  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

Stories  of  any  kind  should  always  be  a  subordinate, 
and  at  the  best  an  incidental  matter,  in  a  sermon  to  chil- 
dren ;  helpful  as  they  may  be  when  used  fittingly  and 
with  caution.  And  here  is  where  preaching  to  children 
has  been  belittled,  if  not  actually  degraded;  while  the 
preacher's  preaching  power  has  been  lowered,  if  not  lost. 
So  much  has  been  said  of  the  value  of  story  "scrap-books" 
to  the  children's  preacher,  that  the  idea  has  gained  cur- 
rency that  a  sermon  to  children  might  be  made  by  string- 
ing together  a  series  of  stories  from  the  preacher's  scrap- 
book  ;  and  the  appearance  of  not  a  few  of  the  many 
published  sermons  to  children  would  seem  to  justify  the 
belief  that  tJicy  had  been  made  in  just  that  way.  The 
chief  aim  in  preaching  to  children  should  be  to  convey 
to  the  children's  minds,  distinctly  and  impressively,  the 
thought  which  the  preacher  has  made  the  basis  of  his 
sermon  of  the  hour.  If,  indeed,  it  be  the  case  that  a  story 
can  make  the  sermon  thought  clearer  and  more  impres- 
sive to  the  children, — instead  of  "diverting"  them  from 
that  thought, — then  it  is  desirable  to  use  that  story;  but 
otherwise  a  story  ought  not  to  be  given  a  place  in  the 
sermon.  It  were  better,  far  better,  to  give  the  children 
a  bright,  fresh  thought  in  simple  language,  without  a 
story,  than  to  give  them  the  best  story,  or  the  best  series 
of  stories,  imaginable,  without  making  the  thought  of  the 
sermon  the  chief  attraction  and  interest  of  the  preaching. 
Some  very  popular  and  successful  preachers  to  children 
have  rarely,  if  ever,  told  a  story  in  their  sermons  to  chil- 
dren. Many  preachers  to  children,  on  the  other  hand, 
have  fallen  short  or  have  failed  in  their  proper  mission 
through  over  story-telling. 

Illustratio7i  as  a  means  of  making  a  truth  clearer  is  of 


ITS  nUNCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  363 

value  in  all  preaching  as  in  all  teaching.  Peculiarly  is 
it  helpful  in  conveying  truth  to  the  minds  of  children. 
Hence  the  preacher  who  is  possessed  of  a  great  truth 
which  he  desires  to  impart  to  children  hearers,  is  likely 
to  look  about  him  for  illustrations  which  will  aid  him  in 
that  endeavor.  But  this  is  a  very  different  matter  from 
story-telling.  Better  than  a  scrap-book  of  stories,  and 
better  than  the  best  available  cyclopedia  of  compiled  illus- 
trations, as  a  help  to  the  gathering  of  illustrations  for  use 
in  a  children's  sermon,  is  the  study  of  children  them- 
selves. He  who  would  illustrate  truth  to  children  must 
know  the  ways  of  children,  and  must  be  familiar  with 
their  methods  of  thought,  of  speech,  and  of  action.  In 
acquiring  this  familiarity,  the  preacher  to  children  can  be 
storing  up  material  for  use  in  his  sermons  to  children. 

And  as  in  the  matter  of  illustrations,  so  in  the  matter 
of  applications,  in  a  sermon  to  children.  The  sermon 
truth  is  to  be  applied  by  the  preacher  to  children  as  chil- 
dren, when  it  has  been  clearly  stated  and  fittingly  illus- 
trated to  them  by  him.  Its  applications  to  adult  hearers 
may  be  obvious,  or  it  may  easily  be  perceived  and  made 
plain  by  the  preacher,  because  he  is  himself  an  adult, 
accustomed  to  the  ways  and  thoughts  and  feelings  of  one 
in  maturity  of  life.  But  these  applications  may  be  all 
unsuited  to  children,  while  the  preacher's  duty  is  to  show 
the  application  of  the  truth  he  has  declared  to  those  to 
whom  he  has  declared  it,  in  lines  and  to  an  extent  beyond 
their  ability  to  perceive  those  applications  for  themselves. 
In  order  to  do  this  effectively,  the  preacher  must  be  famil- 
iar with  children  as  children ;  and  this  needful  familiarity 
with  the  ways  and  wants  of  childhood  by  the  preacher 
as  a  preacher,  involves  a  study  of  children  by  the  preacher 


364  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

while  a  preacher,  in  addition  to  his  general  knowledge  of 
childhood,  and  to  his  imperfect  memories  of  his  own  early- 
years  of  life. 

In  short,  he  who  preaches  to  children  must  understand 
children ;  and  no  man  can  understand  children  unless  he 
studies  them.  Therefore  it  is  that  no  set  of  rules  can  suf- 
fice for  the  guidance  of  a  children's  preacher,  any  more 
than  a  set  of  rules  can  meet  the  necessities  of  a  preacher 
who  goes  as  a  missionary  to  a  people  with  whose  lan- 
guage and  whose  modes  of  life  and  of  thought  he  is  un- 
familiar. He  can  indeed  be  told  with  emphasis,  that  it 
is  incumbent  upon  him  to  learn  that  people,  and  to  learn 
their  language;  but  just  how  he  can  do  this,  it  is  for 
himself  to  ascertain ;  no  man  can  ascertain  it  for  him. 
Woe,  woe,  to  him,  however,  if,  because  of  the  difficulties 
of  learning  a  new  language,  or  of  re-learning  one  which 
he  once  knew  but  has  forgotten,  the  preacher  contents 
himself  with  preaching  to  those  residents  of  his  mission- 
ary field  who  happen  to  know  the  language  which  he  can 
speak  easiest;  neglecting,  meanwhile,  the  neediest,  the 
most  important,  and  the  most  hopeful,  natives  of  that  field, 
to  whom  he  was  specifically  commissioned  as  a  preacher 
of  God's  truth ! 

Yung  Wing,  as  a  Chinese  boy,  knew  the  language  and 
the  ways  of  the  boys  of  China.  Brought  to  America,  and 
educated  under  our  best  Christian  and  social  influences, 
he  went  back  to  China  with  the  knowledge  and  the  tastes 
and  the  modes  of  thinking  of  a  Yale  College  graduate. 
He  had  forgotten  the  language  of  his  childhood.  He 
was  practically  unfamiliar  with  the  life  and  thought  of  the 
Chinese  people.  His  immediate  tastes  were  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  European  and  American  residents  of  the  Chi- 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  365 

nese  coast.  Another  man,  in  his  position,  might  have 
been  satisfied  with  Christian  work  among  those  foreign- 
ers, and  even  have  consoled  himself  with  the  belief  that 
he  was  on  a  higher  plane  of  effort  than  if  he  were  to 
accommodate  himself  to  the  Chinese,  and  were  to  learn 
anew  to  address  them  in  their  own  language.  But,  God 
be  praised!  Yung  Wing  had  a  higher  conception  than 
this.  He  saw  that  the  millions  of  Chinese  youth  were  a 
worthier  object  of  his  evangelizing  endeavors  than  the 
few  hundreds  of  educated  European  and  American  adults 
who  were  already  within  reach  of  his  influence  where  and 
as  he  was.  So  Yung  Wing  set  himself  to  learn  anew  the 
language  of  his  childhood,  and  to  study  again  those  who 
were  as  he  w^as  when  he  was  a  child.  And  thus  it  was 
that  Yung  Wing  became  a  power  for  good  in  behalf  of 
the  whole  empire  of  China;  as,  obviously,  he  never  could 
have  been,  had  he  not  been  willing  to  become  as  a  child 
again  for  their  sakes,  and  for  Christ's  sake.^  And  herein 
is  illustrated  the  duty  and  the  hope  of  him  who  would 
preach  God's  truth  to  children. 

The  main  requisites  of  a  sermon  to  children  are :  an 
important  theme ;  an  obviously  fitting  text ;  a  well-defined 
and  easily-remembered  outline  plan;  simplicity  in  lan- 
guage; clearness  of  statement,  with  such  helps  of  illus- 

1  Yung  Wing,  a  native  of  China,  was  brought  to  the  United  States  and  edu- 
cated here.  Graduated  at  Yale  College  in  1854,  he  returned  to  China  with  a 
purpose  of  doing  all  in  his  power  for  the  opening  of  his  native  land  to  the 
influences  of  Christian  education.  After  twenty  years  of  patient  watching 
and  of  persistent  prayerful  endeavor,  he  induced  his  government  to  move  in 
the  matter  of  sending  chosen  Chinese  lads  to  America  for  their  elementary 
education.  Yung  Wing  was  in  charge  of  this  undertaking  at  its  inception, 
holding  at  the  same  time  a  diplomatic  position  as  a  representative  of  his  gov- 
ernment at  Washington.  Yale  College  conferred  on  him  the  degree  of  LL.  D. 
in  recognition  of  his  important  services  to  the  cause  of  Christian  education. 


366  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

tration  as  will  make  that  statement  yet  clearer;  and 
explicit  applications  of  the  sermon  truth  to  the  needs  of 
children  as  children.^  So  far,  as  to  the  sermon  itself. 
Now,  a  few  words  as  to  the  delivery  of  the  sermon. 

If  the  children  who  are  preached  to  can  be  gathered 
by  themselves,  immediately  before  the  preacher's  eye,  the 
preacher  has  a  decided  advantage.  He  can  be  in  direct 
communication  with  them  as  a  compact  body  of  hearers ; 
and  they,  on  the  other  hand,  can  influence  and  be  influ- 
enced by  each  other  as  a  little  community  by  themselves. 
But,  wherever  the  children  are  seated,  he  who  preaches 
to  them  would  do  well  to  make  the  connection  between 
himself  and  them  a  complete  and  an  assured  fact,  by  se- 
curing from  them  the  re-statement  to  him  of  his  text,  after 
he  has  announced  it,  before  he  goes  on  with  his  sermon. 
A  preacher  who  is  not  accustomed  to  this  method  may 
have  difficulty  at  this  point ;  but,  if  so,  it  is  important  for 
him  to  face  and  overcome  this  difficulty  at  the  start.  If, 
indeed,  he  cannot  inspire  his  young  hearers  with  sufficient 
confidence  to  repeat  over  to  him  his  simple  text,  a  few 
words  at  a  time,  as  he  makes  request  for  it,  he  must  be 
at  a  disadvantage  in  his  effort  to  transfer  the  thought  of 
his  mind  to  their  minds.  A  telegraph  operator  who  fails, 
after  repeated  calls,  to  get  a  response  from  the  other  end 

1  While  this  Lecture  is  passing  through  the  press,  I  see  for  the  first  time 
Dr.  W.  G.  Blaikie's  manual  of  homiletical  and  pastoral  theology  {For  the 
Work  of  the  Aihiistry),  in  which  there  is  a  chapter  on  Pastoral  Care  of 
the  Young,  comprising  pertinent  suggestions  to  the  preacher  to  children 
(p.  196  f.),  quite  in  the  line  of  the  recommendations  made  above.  "A  good 
preacher  to  the  young,"  says  Dr.  Blaikie,  "will  be  careful  to  choose  a  text 
short,  bright,  striking ;  the  arrangement  will  be  simple,  and  the  heads  as  ob- 
vious and  as  easily  to  be  remembered  as  possible  ;  a  large  part  of  his  sermon 
will  be  illustration ;  and  he  will  be  specially  careful  to  make  a  specific  and 
not  a  vague  application." 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  367 

of  his  wire,  understands  very  well  that  there  is  no  gain 
in  his  going  on  with  his  work  of  transmitting  words  over 
a  broken  circuit.  And  he  who  would  send  a  message 
from  the  pulpit  station  to  the  children's  pew  has  like  need, 
with  any  other  operator,  to  be  sure  of  a  working  circuit. 

As  with  the  text,  so  with  the  successive  points  of  the 
sermon  outline.  It  is  well  to  state  each  one  of  these 
points  distinctly,  in  its  time  and  order,  to  the  children, 
and  to  ask  for  it  back  again  from  the  children.  The  gain 
of  this  method  is  much  the  same  as  that  of  the  similar 
method  in  vogue  in  the  days  of  St.  Augustine,  as  already 
mentioned.^  It  tests  and  helps  the  attention  of  the  hear- 
ers. And,  moreover,  it  makes  the  text  and  the  outline, 
as  thus  emf)hasized  by  the  hearers  in  the  repetition,  more 
distinctively  their  own.  With  each  successive  point  of 
the  outline,  in  its  order,  the  preceding  point  or  points 
should  be  called  for  by  the  preacher  and  given  to  him 
by  the  hearers.  And  at  the  close  of  the  sermon  the  text 
itself,  together  with  all^of  the  points  of  the  outline,  should 
be  thus  called  for  and  repeated.  By  this  method  the 
children  are  helped  to  carry  in  their  minds  the  progress, 
or  movement,  of  the  sermon,  and  to  possess  it  as  an  en- 
tirety in  their  memory.  This  plan,  also,  has  justified 
itself  by  the  test  of  experience  on  the  part  of  successful 
preachers  to  children,  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic,  for 
now  fifty  years  and  more. 

It  is  just  here  that  some  preachers  to  children  have  had 
exceptional  power  as  preachers  to  children,  notwithstand- 
ing their  poorer  method  in  other  respects ;  while  others, 
whose  sermons  were  of  a  greatly  superior  grade,  have 

1  See  p.  332  f.,  ante. 


368  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

had  lack.  Therefore  it  is  that  I  give  special  emphasis  to 
this  point.  Dr.  John  Todd  ascribed  a  measure  of  his 
success  as  a  children's  preacher  to  his  method  of  ques- 
tioning his  young  hearers  as  he  went  along  with  his  dis- 
courses to  them.^  Dr.  Richard  Newton  did  far  more,  as 
it  seems  to  me,  for  his  child  hearers,  by  questioning  into 
and  out  of  them  his  text  and  his  sermon  outline,  when- 
ever he  preached  to  them,  than  even  by  the  most  attrac- 
tive of  the  many  stories  which  he  told  to  them. 

Bishop  W.  Walsham  How,  of  London,  in  his  Plain  Words 
to  Children,  gives  illustration  of  his  questioning  method 
in  such  preaching,  beyond  this  fastening  of  the  text  and 
outline  in  mind.  Thus,  for  example,  in  a  sermon  on  "A 
Road  for  God,"  from  the  text  "A  highway  for  our  God," 
in  treating  the  second  point  of  his  discourse,  "  How  is  the 
road  to  be  made?  "  he  says :  "  Why,  here  is  the  very  thing 
described  for  us.  When  the  prophet  Isaiah  tells  us  about 
the  highway  to  be  made  for  God,^  he  goes  on  at  once, 
*  Every  valley  shall  be  exalted,  and  every  mountain  and 
hill  shall  be  made  low:  and  the  crooked  shall  be  made 
straight,  and  the  rough  places  plain.'  That  is  exactly 
the  way  anybody  would  make  a  road  anywhere.  Did 
you  ever  see  a  new  railway  being  made  ?  "  Children  who 
have  seen  a  railroad  in  process  of  making,  will  be  prompt 
to  say  so.  And  the  questioning  and  answering  goes  on: 
"  What  did  they  do  with  the  valleys  or  hollows  ?  [Filled 
them  up.]  Yes;  they  had  to  be  'exalted' — lifted  up. 
And  the  mountains  and  hills?  [Cut  them  down.]  Yes; 
they  were  'made  low.'  And  the  crooked  places  were  —  ? 
[Made  straight]     And  the  rough  —  ?     [Made  smooth.] 

^  Todd's  Lectures  to  Children,  Preface,  p.  7.  *  Isa.  40 :  3-5. 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  369 

To  be  sure.  Now  it  is  just  the  same  when  we  want  a 
road  made  in  our  hearts.  Do  you  think  you  could  tell 
me  what  all  these  things  mean  ?  Try  and  think."  And 
then  the  preacher  goes  on  to  tell  them  that  which  they 
are  now  all  the  more  interested  to  know,  what  is  meant 
by  this  building  of  a  road  in  the  heart  for  God.^ 

Questioning  in  some  such  familiar  way  as  this  tends  to 
make  the  sermon  to  children  more  vividly  a  matter  of  co- 
work  between  preacher  and  hearer,^ according  to  the  primi- 
tive idea  of  the  term  "homily;"  or,  as  the  French  call 
it,  to  the  present  day,  "conference."  In  the  direction  of 
securing  this  desirable  sense  of  a  personal  conference  be- 
tween the  preacher  and  his  young  hearers,  Bishop  How 
says,  in  the  Preface  to  his  published  sermons :  "  I  need 
hardly  say  that  a  sermon  to  children  would  be  a  complete 
failure  if  read.  It  must  be  spoken,  and  spoken  with  life 
and  vigor.  The  sermons  in  this  little  book  were  preached 
at  the  Children's  Services  in  Whittington  Church ;  the 
children  on  such  occasions  being  ranged  in  the  body  of  the 
church,  and  the  sermons  being  spoken  from  the  chancel 
step.     The  sermons  were  written  after  being  preached."  ^ 

1  Plain  Words  to  Children,  p.  4. 

2  John  Summerfield,  the  brilliant  young  English  Wesleyan  clergyman,  who 
won  such  laurels  as  a  preacher  in  New  York  City  from  1821  to  1825,  used  this 
power  of  questioning  his  young  hearers  in  his  sermons  to  them  ;  for  he  was 
great  enough  to  preach  frequently  to  children.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Waterbury  says 
on  this  point,  in  description  of  Summerfield  {Sketches  of  Eloquent  Preachers, 
p.  28  f.) :  "  His  first  sermon  which  the  writer  heard  hirn  preach  was  addressed 
to  the  young.  He  delighted  in  preaching  to  children.  He  inaugurated  almost 
an  entirely  new  style  of  preaching  to  them,  that  of  question  and  answer, 
giving  him  scope,  and  keeping  up  the  attention  of  his  little  auditors." 

'  Here  again  Dr.  Blaikie  {For  the  Work  of  the  Ministry,  p.  196  f.)  empha- 
sizes a  point  that  is  pressed  in  this  Lecture.  He  says:  "In  his  delivery  he 
[the  preacher  to  children]  will  study  to  speak  in  a  natural  tone  of  voice.     His 

24 


370  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

The  preacher  should  be  on  the  watch  against  tiring  the 
children  by  his  too  long  a  strain  of  their  attention  in  one 
direction,  and  against  losing  his  hold  on  them  through 
any  restlessness  of  theirs,  or  through  any  special  cause  of 
their  diversion.  Here  it  is  that  there  is  one  gain  in  the 
calling  of  fresh  attention  to  the  text,  or  to  one  of  the  out- 
line points  of  the  sermon,  and  asking  for  its  repetition  by 
the  children ;  or  in  breaking  the  sermon  delivery  by  the 
singing  of  a  hymn.  Dr.  McKee  was  accustomed  to  di- 
vide all  his  sermons  to  children  into  three  parts,  "  ordi- 
narily of  about  equal  length,"  with  singing  between  them. 
He  says:  "I  found  that  dividing  the  sermon  into  three 
talks  was  a  great  advantage.  If  any  kind  of  interruption 
broke  the  attention  during  'CaQ  first  talk,  I  made  that  talk 
short,  and  had  the  children  stand  up  and  sing.  Then  I 
introduced  into  the  second  talk  most  of  what  I  had 
intended  for  the  first.  If  interrupted  again,  I  still  had  a 
third  chance." 

This  plan,  also,  has  the  sanction  of  antiquity — at  least 
in  New  England.  Many  a  Puritan  preacher,  after  the 
first  hour  or  so  of  his  sermon,  would  rest  himself,  if  not 
his  people,  by  setting  them  at  singing  a  psalm  or  a  hymn 
before  he  went  on  with  his  discourse.  Thus  it  is  said  of 
one  of  the  old  pastors  in  Norwich,  that  "  in  the  summer 
season,  when  the  heat  was  oppressive,  if  he  wanted  a 
short  recess  between  the  prayer  and  sermon,  he  would 

performance  will  be  at  the  furthest  possible  remove  from  that  of  an  essay  read 
before  an  audience ;  most  emphatically  it  will  be  a  word  spoken  to  them.  In 
preaching  to  children  one  can  easily  get  rid  of  the  fear  of  man  which  bringeth 
a  snare,  and  without  dread  of  offense  say  things  which  one  might  shrink  from 
uttering  face  to  face  with  the  old.  There  is  a  directness  and  point  in  such 
preaching  that  often  contrasts  very  favorably  with  the  unnatural  tones  and 
vague  circumlocutions  of  ordinary  discourses." 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  37 1 

give  out  a  long  psalm,  such  as  may  be  found  in  Watts' 
version.  For  example,  he  would  name,  perhaps,  the 
104th  Psalm,  long  metre,  beginning  at  the  fourteenth 
verse : 

'  To  cragged  hills  ascends  the  goat, 

And  at  the  air>'  mountain's  foot 

The  feebler  creatures  make  their  cell ; 

He  gives  them  wisdom  where  to  dwell,'  .  .  . 

While  the  singing  of  a  dozen  verses  was  going  on,  in  the 
tune  Old  Hundred  or  Hebron,  he  would  retire  to  a  shade 
in  the  rear  of  the  church,  to  catch  the  breeze  that  floated 
up  the  river;  and  when  singing  was  ended,  he  returned 
to  the  pulpit,  and  commenced  his  sermon."^  Indeed,  the 
primary  idea  of  a  noon  intermission  between  the  two  ser- 
vices of  the  day  in  the  New  England  churches  generally, 
was  that  of  a  break  in  the  one  long  sermon  of  the  day.  In 
a  similar  spirit,  by  one  means  or  by  another,  the  preacher 
to  children  should  feel  a  responsibility  for  having  and 
holding  the  attention  and  interest  of  his  hearers  from  the 
beginning  to  the  close  of  a  sermon  to  them ;  and  he  should 
avail  himself  of  all  proper  helps  to  this  end. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  while  children  are  more  likely  than 
adults  to  show  that  they  are  inattentive  and  uninterested 
under  poor  preaching,  they  are  far  more  likely  than  adults 
to  be  attentive  and  interested  when  the  preaching  to  them 
is  such  as  it  should  be.  No  audience  in  the  world  is  so 
receptive  and  so  responsive  when  fitting  truth  is  fittingly 
presented  to  it,  as  an  audience  of  children.  Good  preach- 
ing to  children  is,  it  is  true,  more  difficult  of  attainment 
than  is  good  preaching  to  any  other  class  in  the  com- 

^  The  Rev.  Dr.  Bond's  Historical  Discourse,  p.  16. 


372  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

munity,  but  it  is  correspondingly  remunerative.  Testi- 
fying to  this  point,  Dr.  Cox  says  of  his  children  audiences, 
and  of  his  sermons  to  them :  "A  more  interesting  and 
interested  audience  than  that  which  sits  immediately  be- 
fore me,  [at  such  a  time,]  no  minister  could  desire.  If 
no  sermons  I  have  ever  preached  have  cost  me  so  much 
labor,  none  have  met  with  a  more  immediate  response, 
or  have  won  a  more  overflowing  reward.  .  .  .  As  long 
as  I  live  I  must  remember  the  rows  of  bright,  intent  faces 
on  which  I  looked  down;  now  attentive  and  amused,  and 
now  attentive  and  thoughtful,  but  always  attentive,  and 
responding  to  every  note  of  thought  or  emotion  which 
happened  to  be  struck."^  And  this  could  hardly  fail  to 
be  the  testimony  of  any  preacher  who,  with  the  scholar- 
ship and  the  preaching  power  of  Dr.  Cox,  should  devote 
his  time  and  talents  so  freely  and  persistently,  and  with 
such  loving  heartiness,  to  preparing  himself  to  be  a 
preacher  to  impressible  children,  instead  of  only  to  unim- 
pressible  adults.^ 

It  is,  in  fact,  in  the  preacher's  sphere  as  in  many  an- 
other :  the  easier  road  is  the  more  alluring  to  him  who 
would  make  rapid  and  pleasing  progress,  while  the  more 
difficult  path  really  opens  the  way  to  larger  possibilities 

1  Preface  to  The  Bird's  Nest,  p.  vi  f. 
*  A  chief  reason  for  the  absence,  from  the  ordinary  preaching  services  of  the 
church,  of  so  many  children  who  are  in  the  Sunday-school,  is  the  failure  of 
the  pulpit  preacher  to  try  to  secure  their  attendance  on  his  preaching,  or  to 
address  himself  to  them  when  they  do  attend.  If  their  Sunday-school  teach- 
ers did  no  more  for  them  than  he  does,  the  Sunday-school  would  not  be  any 
more  attractive  to  them  than  the  pulpit  is.  But  if  a  preacher  does  his  part 
for  the  children,  the  children  will  do  their  part  for  the  preacher.  This  is  the 
testimony  of  preachers  who  are  readier  to  preach  to  the  children  when  they 
are  before  them,  than  to  complain  of  them  when  they  are  not  there.  For 
example,  the   Rev.  Dr.  E.  P.  Goodwin,  pastor  of  the  First  Congregational 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  373 

of  high  and  permanent  achieving.  Preaching  to  adults 
is  the  easier ;  preaching  to  children  is  the  more  hopeful. 
The  wider  and  more  attractive  road  is  entered  and  pur- 
sued by  the  many; 

"  But  wisdom  shows  a  narrower  path, 
With  here  and  there  a  traveler." 

And  here  I  rest  my  suggestions  in  the  line  of  the  prin- 
ciples and  the  methods  of  preaching  to  children ;  and 
here  I  bring  to  a  close  this  series  of  lectures  on  the  mis- 
sion of  the  Church  of  Christ  to  the  young ;  emphasizing 

Church,  Chicago,  has  this  to  say,  in  a  private  letter,  of  his  recent  efforts  with 
the  children :  "Some  years  ago  I  came  to  know  that  rather  more  than  half 
of  the  children  of  our  Sunday-school  were  from  families  of  non-church-goers 
[that  was  a  hopeful  indication,  so  far,  for  the  children  thus  reached  by  the 
church].  In  addition  to  that  fact,  I  had  been  for  some  time  anxious  to  see 
more  of  the  children  of  our  own  people  at  our  church  services,  especially  on 
Sunday  morning.  I  determined,  therefore,  to  make  an  effort  to  bring  a  por- 
tion at  least  of  these  children  under  the  influences  and  teachings  of  the  Lord's 
house.  I  persuaded  my  people  to  change  the  Sunday-school  from  the  after- 
noon to  the  morning — at  9.30,  and  to  put  the  church  service  at  11,  instead  of 
10.30.  Then  I  told  the  children  what  my  desire  was,  sought  to  awaken  inter- 
est among  them,  and  offered  three  sets  of  rewards  for  regular  church  attend- 
ance on  their  part.  ...  In  connection  with -this  I  have  introduced  monthly 
selections  of  Scripture,  in  the  Psalms  and  Gospels  and  Epistles,  which  we 
learn  by  heart  and  repeat  together  in  the  Sunday-school  and  in  church  ser- 
vice. I  have  also  preached  a  children's  sermon  once  a  month,  in  the  place 
of  the  regular  sermon  ;  have  introduced  into  the  service  more  or  less  of  hymns 
in  which  the  children  could  join;  have  had  them  repeat  with  me  the  Com- 
mandments, the  Beatitudes,  the  Apostles'  Creed,  etc. ;  seeking  to  have  them 
feel  that  the  service  is  as  truly  for  them  as  for  the  old  folks.  The  result  has 
been,  that  I  have  had  from  three  hundred  to  three  hundred  and  fifty  children 
very  regularly  at  morning  service,  and  have  enjoyed  greatly  seeing  and  hear- 
ing them.  /  have  been  helped  whether  they  have  or  not."  In  a  similar  strain 
the  Rev.  A.  Hastings  Ross,  pastor  of  the  First  Congregational  Church  of 
Port  Huron,  Michigan,  says  (Introduction  to  ^Vr^fj/w  to  Children,  p.  ix) : 
"  It  wasin  May,  1881,  .  .  .  that  I  ventured  to  announce  to  my  people  a  series 
of  sermons  to  children.  .  .  .  It  still  continues,  one  every  Sunday,  preceding 


374  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

once  more,  as  I  conclude,  the  pre-eminent  importance  of 
this  mission,  and  the  strangeness  of  its  ignoring  or  its 
neglect,-  so  generally. 

A  unique  characteristic  of  the  Christian  religion  as 
disclosed  by  its  divine  Founder,  is  its  exaltation  of  child- 
hood. Christianity,  and  only  Christianity  among  the 
religions  of  the  world,  gives  the  first  place  in  its  mission 
and  in  its  honors  to  children.  Not  merely  a  place,  but 
the  first  place,  is,  in  its  plans,  accorded  to  a  child — as  its 
capable  recipient  and  as  its  typical  representative.  It  was 
a  real  flesh-and-blood  child  that  our  Lord  took  and  set 
in  the  group  of  his  disciples,  as  a  type  of  the  greatest  in 
his  kingdom.^  It  was  of  that  real  flesh-and-blood  child 
that  he  said:  "Whosoever  shall  receive  one  of  such  little 
children  in  my  name,  receiveth  me."^  It  was  real  flesh- 
and-blood  children  for  whom  our  Lord  insisted  on  a 
place  in  nearness  to  himself,  when  his  chosen  disciples  felt 
that  adults  were  better  entitled  to  such  nearness  just  then.^ 
It  was  to  those  real  flesh-and-blood  children,  at  that  very 
time,  that  he  referred,  when  he  said  explicitly:  "Whoso- 
ever shall  not  receive  the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  little  child, 
he  shall  in  no  wise  enter  therein."*  It  was  real  flesh-and- 
blood  children  whose  praises  in  the  temple  courts  our 
Lord  commended,  when  the  chief  priests  were  moved 

the  usual  sermon,  with  a  short  hymn  between  the  two.  .  .  .  About  the  same 
time  we  began  a  roll-call  every  Sunday  in  the  church-school,  embracing 
[among  other  things]  .  .  .  the  number  at  church  services."  Mr.  Ross  says 
that  the  average  of  attendance  at  the  church  services  shown  by  the  school 
records  was,  for  the  year  1885,  seventy-six  per  cent.  If,  indeed,  Sunday- 
school  scholars  do  not  attend  on  the  pulpit  services,  it  is  evident  that  some- 
thing ought  to  be  done  about  it — in  the  pulpit. 

1  Matt.  18  :  i-s  ;  Mark  9  :  33-37  ;  Luke  9  :  46-48. 

2  Mark  9:  37  (R.  v.).        3  Mark  10  :  13-16.  *  Mark  10  :  15  (R.  V.j. 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  375 

with  indignation  against  them  in  their  forwardness.^  It 
was  obviously  young  children  to  whom  our  risen  Lord 
directed  the  first  attention  of  the  leader  in  the  work  of 
his  new  church,  when  he  asked  Peter  to  evidence  his  love 
for  him  by  ministering  to  the  "lambs,"  before  any  men- 
tion was  made  of  the  "  sheep  "  of  his  flock.^  Children 
were  clearly  included  as  a  main  element  in  the  schools 
of  instruction  provided  for  in  the  latest  command  of  our 
ascending  Lord,^  as  the  basis  of  his  Church,  which  he 
had  already  described  as  made  up  of  children  and  of  the 
child-like. 

This  new  prominence  for  children,  under  the  Christian 
dispensation,  was  not  their  prominence  in  the  family  as 
the  family;  but  it  was  their  prominence  in  the  mission 
and  in  the  ministrations  of  the  Church  as  the  Church.  It 
was  an  added  element  in  God's  plans  and  methods  for  the 
uprearing  of  a  holy  people ;  beyond  all  that  was  in  opera- 
tion in  and  through  the  family,  before  Christ's  Church 
as  a  Church  was  a  fact  and  a  force  in  the  active  agencies 
of  his  kingdom.*  And  because  it  was  a  novelty  in  the 
world's  history  this  pre-eminence  of  childhood,  as  de- 
clared by  our  Lord,  was  a  stumbling-block  and  an  offense 

1  Matt.  21 :  15-17.  *  John  21 :  15-17.  '  Matt.  28  ;  19  (R.  V.). 

*  Any  careful  study  of  the  early  years  of  Christianity  will  tend  to  show  the 
new  and  enlarged  interest  in  children  taken  by  the  Church  of  Christ,  as  in 
contrast  with  the  view  entertained  of  them  by  the  ancient  heathen  and  classic 
world.  See,  for  example,  on  this  point,  Uhlhorn's  Confiict  of  Christianity  luith 
Heathenism,  pp.  102,  138,  182  f.,  272  f. ;  also  his  Christian  Charity  in  the 
Ancient  Church,  pp.  359,  386-388.  There  would,  indeed,  be  more  promi- 
nence given  to  the  facts  in  this  sphere  if  the  subject  itself  had  been  a  more 
prominent  one  in  the  minds  of  modern  church  historians  generally.  To 
examine  the  topical  indexes  of  most  of  the  church  histories  in  current  use  on 
both  sides  of  the  ocean,  would  lead  one  to  infer  that  there  were  no  children 
in  the  centuries  covered  by  those  histories.     But  this  would  be  an  error  1 


3/6  PREACHING  TO  CHILDREN: 

to  proud  rabbi  and  to  ambitious  apostle.  Nor  has  it  yet 
overborne  all  silent  contempt,  or  all  active  opposition, 
among  those  who  are  named  by  his  name,^  There  are 
still  Christian  rabbis  who  devote  themselves,  as  preachers 
and  as  teachers,  to  the  elaboration  and  the  discussion  of 
themes  which  only  the  adult  mind  is  competent  to,  and 
is  pleased  with.  And  there  are  still  Christian  apostles 
who,  in  the  spirit  of  the  ecclesiastical  succession  so  far, 
stand  ready  to  rebuke  any  interruption  of  their  own  en- 
joyment of  our  Lcyd's  teachings,  in  order  that  little  chil- 
dren may  be  brought  within  hearing  of  him.  But  just  so 
surely  as  Jesus  Christ  himself  is  the  same  "yesterday  and 
to-day,  yea  and  forever,"  ^  is  he  "  moved  with  indigna- 
tion"^ against  this  refusal  of  his  followers  to  recognize  the 
truth  of  truths  in  the  plan  and  methods  of  his  religion.* 

Those  who  realize  the  distinctive  character  of  Chris- 
tianity as  the  religion  of  children  and  of  the  child-like 

1  At  a  large  gathering  of  clergymen  in  one  of  the  principal  cities  of  the 
United  States,  the  presiding  officer,  who  was  an  eminent  minister,  of  a  na- 
tional reputation,  said  emphatically  that  he  deemed  the  preaching  to  children 
a  lowering  of  the  dignity  of  the  pulpit ! 

2  Heb.  13 :  8  (R.  V.).  »  Mark  lo :  14  (R.  V.). 

*  That  there  are  signs  of  unmistakable  progress  in  the  direction  of  giving 
to  children  a  place  in  the  ministrations  of  the  pulpit  is  obvious,  not  alone  in 
the  work  of  individual  preachers  here  and  there,  on  every  side,  but  in  the 
action  of  national  and  international  assemblies  of  ministers  of  Christ  on  both 
sides  of  the  ocean.  Thus,  for  example,  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Free 
Church  of  Scotland  recently  arranged  for  a  sermon  to  children,  by  a  promi- 
nent clergyman,  on  one  of  the  Sunday  afternoons  during  its  sittings ;  the 
latest  Pan-Presbyterian  Council,  at  London,  expressed  itself  in  favor  of 
special  sermons  to  children ;  and  in  most  of  the  principal  denominations  of 
Christians,  one  Sunday  in  a  year  is  formally  recognized  as  "  Children's  Day,"' 
with  the  understanding  that  then  at  least  the  pulpit  will  direct  its  words  imme- 
diately to  children.  It  is  something  to  secure  one  Sunday  in  fifty-two  for 
the  little  ones.  That  leaves  only  fifty-one  Sundays  in  the  ordinary  year  to 
be  brought  into  line  for  their  benefit. 


ITS  PRINCIPLES  AND  ITS  METHODS.  m 

should  realize,  also,  the  truth  that  the  extension,  the  up- 
building, and  the  establishing  of  Christ's  Church,  must, 
in  the  plan  of  God,  be  done  chiefly  by  means  of  work 
among  and  with  and  for  the  children.  To  them,  as  they 
labor  in  his  name,  the  words  of  our  Lord  concerning  the 
reception  of  his  kingdom  here  on  earth  have  a  literal  as 
well  as  a  figurative  meaning :  "  I  thank  thee,  O  Father, 
Lord  of  heaven  and  earth,  that  thou  didst  hide  these 
things  from  the  wise  and  understanding,  and  didst  reveal 
them  unto  babes:  yea,  Father;  for  so  it  was  well-pleasing 
in  thy  sight."  ^ 

1  Luke  lo  :  21. 


INDEXES. 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL   INDEX. 


[The  following  list  includes  all  the  works  which  have  been  cited  at  first  hand  in  these 
Lectures.  The  edition  is  in  every  case  that  to  which  reference  is  made  in  the  footnotes. 
The  following  abbreviations  are  used  :  n.  d.  (no  date) ;  n.  p.  (no  place);  c.  (copyright); 
ed.  (edition  or  edited) ;  tr.  (translated).  In  the  citations  from  the  Talmud,  made  in  the 
text  and  the  notes  of  the  Lectures,  the  reference  is  to  the  folio  and  column  of  the  Babylo- 
nian Talmud,  unless  the  Jerusalem  Talmud  is  specified ;  in  which  case  the  reference  is 
to  chapter  and  section.  The  references  to  the  treatise  Pirqe  Aboth  are  to  the  chapter 
and  section  of  the  text  as  printed  in  Taylor's  Snyin^s  of  the  Jewish  Fathers.  All 
references  to  the  Talmud,  the  Targums,  and  the  Midrash,  are  at  first  hand,  unless 
otherwise  noted.] 


Abbey,  Charles  J.,  and  Overton, 
John  H. — The  Engli.sh  Church 
in  the  Eighteenth  Century.  New 
ed.,  revised  and  abridged.  Lon- 
don, 1887. 

Abridgment  of  the  Acts  of  the  Gen- 
eral Assembly  of  the  Church  of 
Scotland.    Edinburgh,  181 1. 

Advance,  The.  Vol.  XXII.  Chicago, 
1888. 

Alex.'VNDER,  Archibald. — Sugges- 
tions in  Vindication  of  Sunday- 
schools.     N.  p.,  1829. 
[The  same.]    Revised  and  enlarged 
by  the  author.   Philadelphia,  1845. 

Alford,  Hexry. — The  Greek  Testa- 
ment. With  a  critical  and  e.xeget- 
ical  commentary.  6th  ed.,4Vols. 
Boston  and  New  York,  1873. 

American  Board  of  Commissioners 
for  Foreign  Missions,  Memorial 
Volume  of  the  First  Fifty  Years 
of  the.     4th  ed.     Boston,  1861. 

American  Quarterly  Register,  The. 
Vol.  X.     Boston,  1838. 

American  Sunday  School  Magazine, 
The.  Vols.  I.-V.  Philadelphia, 
1824-29. 


Andrewes,  Lancelot. — The  Pat- 
tern of  Catechistical  Doctrine  at 
Large.     London,  1650. 

Andre\v.s,  Samuel  J. — The  Life  of 
our  Lord  upon  the  Earth.  4th 
ed.    New  York,  1873. 

Ante-N'icene  Fathers,  The.  Ed.  by 
Ale.xander  Roberts  and  James 
Donaldson :  Revised  by  A.  Cleve- 
land Coxe.  8  vols.  Buffalo, 
1885  f. 

Armstrong,  William. — Five-Min- 
ute Sermons  to  Children.  New 
York  and  Cincinnati,  1887. 

ASCHAM,  Roger. —  The  Scholemas- 
ter.  Ed.  and  reprinted  from  the 
1st  and  2d  editions,  1570,  71,  by 
Edward  Arber.     London,   1870. 

Bacon, FR.A.NCIS. — The  Advancement 
of  Learning.  Ed.  by  W.  Aldis 
Wright.     2d  ed.     O.xford,  1880. 

Barnard,  Henry. —  Pestalozzi  and 
Pestalozzianism.  Life,  education- 
al principles,  and  methods  of  John 
Henry  Pestalozzi.  3d  ed.  New 
York,  n.  d.     [c.  1862.] 

381 


382 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


Barnes,  Albert.  —  Christianity  as 
Applied  to  the  Mind  of  a  Child  in 
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mon in  behalf  of  the  American 
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at  Philadelphia,  May  12,  1850. 

Bather,  Edward. — Hints  on  the 
Art  of  Catechising.  A.  posthu- 
mous work.  To  which  is  prefi.xed 
A  Charge  on  Scriptural  Educa- 
tion, Delivered  to  the  Clergy  in 
1835.     3d  ed.     London,  1852. 

Baxter,  Richard.  —  Practical 
Works.  Ed.  by  William  Orme. 
23  vols.     London,  1830. 

Beck,  J.  T.— Pastoral  Theology  of 
the  New  Testament.  Tr.  from 
the  German  by  J.  A.  McClymont 
and  Thomas  Nicol.  Edinlaurgh, 
1885. 

Beecher,  Lyman. — Sermons  Deliv- 
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ton, 1828. 

Bengel,  J.  A. — Gnomon  Novi  Testa- 
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3d  ed.  (1773).     Berlin,  i860. 

Benham,  William. —  Dictionary  of 
Religion.     New  York,  1888. 

Benton,  A.  A. — The  Church  Cyclo- 
paedia :  A  dictionary  of  church 
doctrine,  history,  organization  and 
ritual.     Philadelphia,  1884. 

Bible  Educator,  The.  Ed.  by  E.  H. 
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Bigg,  Charles.— The  Christian  Pla- 
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Bingham,  Joseph. — Origines  Eccle- 
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Bishop,  T.  B.— A  Plea  for  Children's 
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Blaikie,  William  G.  —  For  the 
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Blake,  Mortimer.  — Bible  Chil- 
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Bond,  Alvan.  —  A  Historical  Dis- 
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Boyd,  Robert. —  Food  for  the 
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Breed,  William  P. — Grapes  from 
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Broadus.John  a.— a  Treatise  on  the 
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Brooks,  Phillips.  —  Lectures  on 
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Brown,  G.  Baldwin. — From  Schola 
to  Cathedral :  A  study  of  early 
Christian  architecture  and  its  re- 
lation to  the  life  of  the  Church. 
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Brugsch,  Henry.  — a  History  of 
Egypt  under  the  Pharaohs.  Tr. 
and  ed.  by  Philip  Smith.  2d  ed., 
2  vols.     London,  1881. 

Buisson,  F. — Rapport  sur  I'lnstruc- 
tion  Primaire  ^  I'Exposition  Uni- 
verselle  de  Philadelphie  en  1876. 
Paris,  1878 

Bunsen,  Christian  Charles  Jo- 
sias. — Hippolytus  and  His  Age; 
or.  The  Beginnings  and  Prospects 
of  Christianity.  2d  ed.,  2  vols. 
London,  1854. 

Burnet,  Gilbert. — The  History  of 
the  Reformation  of  the  Church 
of  England.  Revised  by  E.  Nares. 
4  vols.     New  York,  1843. 

Bush  NELL,  Horace.  —  God's 
Thoughts  Fit  Bread  for  Children  : 
A  sermon  preached  before  the 
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ers' convention.  Boston,  1869. 
Sermons  for  the  New  Life.  Re- 
vised ed.     New  York,  1876. 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


383 


BuxTORK,  Johannes.  —  Lex  icon 
Chaklaicum,  Tal  niu  d  ic  um,  e  t 
Rabbinicum.  Ed.  by  J.  Bu.\torf, 
fill  us.  Basel,  1640. 
Syiiagoga  Judaica.  4th  cd.,  revised 
by  J.Jacob  Buxtorf.    Basel,  1680. 

Cardwki-L,  Edward. —  Synodalia  : 
A  collection  of  articles  of  religion, 
canons,  and  proceedings  of  con- 
ventions in  the  province  of  Can- 
terbury, from  tiie  year  1547  to 
the  year  1717.  2  vols.  Oxford, 
1842. 

Catechism  of  the  Council  of  Trent, 
The.  Tr.,  with  notes,  by  Theodore 
Alois  Buckley.     London,  1852. 

Chalmers,  THt)M.A.s. — SelectWorks. 
Ed.  by  William  Hanna.  12  vols. 
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Chesehrough,  Amos  S. — The  Cul- 
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Child's  Preacher,  The :  A  series  of  ad- 
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Christian  Spectator,  The.  Boston, 
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Church  Cyclopsedia,  The.  See  Ben- 
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Church  Sunday  School  Magazine.The. 
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Clark,  F.  E. — The  Children  and  the 
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Cogswell,  William.  —  The  As- 
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Collier,  Josei'H  A. — Little  Crowns 
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Cox,  Samuel. — The  Bird's  Nest,  and 
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Crabb,  George.  —  English  Syno- 
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Cranz,  David. — The  Ancient  and 
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CURRIE,  James. — The  Principles  and 
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Cl'rrier,  a.  H. — The  Life  of  Con- 
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Davids,  Louisa.  —  The  Sunday 
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Deutsch,  Emanuel. — The  Literary 
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Dillmann,  August. — Die  Genesis. 
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Doddridge,  Philip. — Sermons  and 
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Sermons  on  the  Religious  Educa- 
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Dooi.ittel,  Thom.vs. —  A  Plain 
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Dorchester,  Daniel. — The  Prob- 
lem of  Religious  Progress.  New 
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Drury,  B.  Paxson.— a  Fruitful  Life: 
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Dwight,  Timothy. —  Travels;  in 
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384 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


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Eaton,  T.  T.— Talks  to  Children. 
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Ebers,  G. — Egypt;  Descriptive,  His- 
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London  and  New  York,  1879. 

Edersheim,  Alfred.^ — The  Life  and 
Times  of  Jesus  the  Messiah.  2d 
ed.,  2  vols.  New  York  and  Lon- 
don, n.  d. 
Sketches  of  Jewish  Social  Life  in 
the  Days  of  Christ.    London,  n.d. 

Edmond,  John.  —  The  Children's 
Church  at  Home ;  or.  Family 
Services  for  the  Lord's  Day. 
London, 1861. 
[The  same.]  Second  series.  Lon- 
don, 1863. 

Ellicott,  Charles  John. — His- 
torical Lectures  on  the  Life  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Hulsean 
Lectures  for  1859.  Boston,  1862. 
An  Old  Testament  Commentary  for 
English  Readers.  By  various 
writers.  5  vols.  New  York,  n.d. 
A  New  Testament  Commentary  for 
English  Readers.  By  various 
writers.     2  vols.    NewYork.n.  d. 

Encyclopaedia  Britannica,  The :  A  dic- 
tionary of  arts,  sciences  and  gen- 
eral literature.  9th  ed.  (American 
reprint.)     Philadelphia,  1875  ff. 

EWALD,  Heinrich. —  The  History 
of  Israel.  Vol.  VL :  The  Life 
and  Times  of  Christ.  Tr.  by  J. 
Frederick  Smith.     London,  1883. 

FARRAR,  F.  W.— The  Gospel  Ac- 
cording to  St.  Luke.  With  maps, 
notes  and  introduction.  [In  The 
Cambridge  Bible  for  Schools.] 
Cambridge,  18S0. 

The  Life  of  Christ.  2  vols.  New 
York,  n.  d. 

The  Life  and  Work  of  St.  Paul. 
2  vols.     New  York,  n.  d. 

The  Early  Days  of  Christianity. 
New  York,  1883. 


Ferris,  Isaac. — An  Appeal  to  Minis- 
ters of  the  Gospel  in  Behalf  of  Sun- 
day-schools. A  sermon  preached 
at  the  request  of  the  Board  of 
Managers  of  the  American  Sun- 
day School  Union,  Philadelphia, 
May    19,    1834. 

Fish,  Henry  C. — [Masterpieces  of 
Pulpit  Eloquence.]  History  and 
Repository  of  Pulpit  Eloquence. 
2  vols.     New  York,  1869. 

Fisher,  George  Park. — History  of 
the  Christian  Church.  New  York, 
1887. 

Fletcher,  Alexander. — Lectures, 
Adapted  to  the  Capacity  of  Chil- 
dren. Selected  from  the  London 
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New  York,  n.  d. 

Forsyth,  William. — Th»  Novels 
and  Novelists  of  the  Eighteenth 
Century.  In  illustration  of  the 
manners  and  morals  of  the  age. 
New  York,  1871. 

Geikie,  Cunningham. — The  Life 
and  Words  of  Christ.  2  vols,  in 
one.     New  York,  1880. 

Gentleman's  Magazine  and  Historical 
Chronicle,  The.  Vol.  LI  V.,  Part  I. 
London, 1784. 

Gesenius,  William.  —  Thesaurus 
Philologicus  Criticus  Linguae 
HebraetE  et  Chaldaeas  Veteris 
Testament!.  3  vols.  Leipsic, 
1829-42. 

Gibson,  Edmund.— Codex  Juris  Ec- 
clesiastic!   Anglicani.       London, 

1713- 

GiESELER,  John  C.  L. — A  Text- 
Book  of  Church  History.  Tr. 
and  ed.  by  Henry  B.  Smith.  Vol. 
IV.— A.D.1517-1648.  New  York, 
1876. 

Gilbert,  Simeon. — The  Lesson  Sys- 
tem: The  story  of  its  origin  and 
inauguration.     New  York,  1879. 

Gillett,  E.  H. — History  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  the  United 
States  of  America.  Revised  ed., 
2  vols.  Philadelphia,  n.  d.  [c. 
1864.] 

Godkt,  F. —  A  Commentary  on  the 
Gospel  of  St.  Luke.  Tr.  from  the 
2d  French  ed.     New  York,  1S81. 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


38s 


GODWYN,  Thomas. — Moses  and  Aa- 
ron :  Civil  and  ecclesiastical  rites 
used  by  the  ancient  Hebrews. 
London,  1667. 

GOODELL,  C.  L. — How  to  Build  a 
Church.  With  an  Introduction 
by  E.  B.  Webb.  Boston,  n.  d. 
[c.  1883.] 

Gray,  George  Zabriskie.  —  The 
Children's  Crusade  :  An  episode 
of  the  thirteenth  century.  New 
York,  1870. 

Green,  Ashbel,  and  Jone.s,  Joseph 
H.— The  Life  of  Ashbel  Green, 
V.  D.  M.  Begun  to  be  written 
by  himself  in  his  eighty-second 
year  and  continued  to  his  eighty- 
fourth.  Prepared  for  the  press, 
at  the  author's  request,  by  Joseph 
H.  Jones.     New  York,  1849. 

Green,  John  Richard. —  History 
of  the  English  People.  4  vols. 
New  York,  1882. 

Green,  Samuel  G. — Addresses  to 
Children.  With  introductory  sug- 
gestions to  ministers  and  teach- 
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Pearls  for  the  Little  Ones;  or,  Lec- 
tures on  the  Bible.  Philadelphia, 
n.  d. 

Greenwood,  F.  W.  P. — Sermons 
to  Children.  New  ed.  Boston, 
1868. 

Gregory,  Alfred. — Robert  Raikes, 
Journalist  and  Philanthropist :  A 
history  of  the  origin  of  Sunday- 
schools.     New  York,  n.  d. 

Hamburger,  J. — Real-Encyclopadie 
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Strelitz,  1870-83. 

Harris,  J.  Rendel. — Fragments  of 
Philo  Judaeus.  Cambridge,  1887. 
The  Teaching  of  the  Apostles  {Di- 
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Hart,  John  S.— In  the  School- 
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Harvard  College,  Annual  Reports  of 
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l88o-8i.     Cambridge,  1881. 


Hatch,  Edwin. — The  Organization 
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Bampton  Lectures  for  1880.  Ox- 
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Hausrath,  a. —  A  History  of  the 
New  Testament  Times.  Vols.  I., 
II.:  The  Time  of  Jesus.  Tr. 
by  C.  T.  Poynting  and  P.  Quen- 
zer.     London,  1878-80. 

Henderson,  E. — TheVaudois.  Lon- 
don, 1858. 

Henshaw,  J.  P.  K. — The  Usefulness 
of  Sunday -Schools  :  A  sermon 
preached  at  the  request  of  the 
American  Sunday  School  Union, 
in  St.  Andrew's  Church,  Phila- 
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Herbert,  George. — The  Remains 
of  that  Sweet  Singer  of  the  Tem- 
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1848. 

Herodotus. — Historiarum  libri  no- 
vem.  Ed.  by  H.  R.  Dietsch.  2 
vols.    Leipsic,  1864. 

Herzog,  J.  J.,  Plitt,  G.  L.,  and 
Hauck,  a. — Real-Encyklopadie 
fiirprotestantische  Theologie  und 
Kirche.     Leipsic,  1877  ff. 

Hesiod. — Carmina.  Ed.,  with  notes, 
by  Carolus  Goettlingius.  2d  ed. 
Gotha,  1843. 

Hetherington,  W.  M. — History  of 
the  Church  of  Scotland.  From 
the  introduction  of  Christianity  to 
the  period  of  the  Disruption  in 
1843.  3d  American,  from  the 
3d  Edinburgh  ed.  New  York, 
1844. 
History  of  the  Westminster  Assem- 
bly of  Divines.     New  York,  1843. 

Hill,  John  C. — The  Children's  Ser- 
mon. With  a  selection  of  five- 
minute  sermons  to  children.  Phil- 
adelphia, 1882. 

Hirsch,  Samson  Raphael. — Aus 
dem  rabbinischen  Schulleben. 
[In  "  Einladungschrift  zu  der 
offentlichen  Priifung  der  Unter- 
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Religions-Gesellschaft  zu  Frank- 
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the-Main,  1871. 


25 


386 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


Home,  the  School,  and  the  Church  ; 
or,  The  Presbyterian  Educational 
Repository.  Ed.  by  C.  Van 
Rensselaer.  lo  vols.  Philadel- 
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Hood,  E.  Paxton. — The  Day,  the 
'Book,  and  the  Teacher:  A  cen- 
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How,  W.  Walsham. — Plain  Words 
to  Children.  5th  ed.  London, 
n.  d.     [1886.] 

Humphrey,  Heman.  —  The  Way  to 
Bless  and  Save  our  Country  :  A 
sermon  preached  in  Philadelphia, 
at  the  request  of  the  American 
Sunday  School  Union,  May  23, 
1831. 

Jebb,  John. — Pastoral  Instructions, 
on  the  Character  and  Principles  of 
the  Church  of  England.  Selected 
from  his  former  publications.  New 
ed.     London,  1844. 

JESSUP,  H.  Harris. — Syrian  Home- 
Life.  Compiled  by  Isaac  Riley. 
New  York,  n.  d.     [c.  1874.] 

Jones,  William. — The  Jubilee  Me- 
morial of  the  Religious  Tract 
Society  :  Containing  a  record  of 
its  origin,  proceedings,  and  re- 
sults, A.  D.  1799,  to  A.  D.  1849. 
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JOSEPHUS,  Flavius. — Opera  Omnia. 
Ed.  by  Immanuel  Bekker.  6  vols. 
Leipsic,  1855. 

JosT,  Isaac  Marcus. — Allgemeino 
Geschichte  des  israelitischen  Vol- 
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JOWETT,  B. — The  Dialogues  of  Plato. 
Tr.  into  English,  with  analyses 
and  introductions.  4  vols.  Ox- 
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Keim,  Theodor.— The  History  of 
Jesus  of  Nazara  :  Considered  in 
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6  vols.     London,  1876-81. 

Kirk,  E.  N. — Address  to  the  Con- 
vention of  Sunday  School  Teach- 
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Boston,  n.  d. 


KiTTO,    John.— A    Cyclopaedia  of 

Biblical  Literature.     3d  ed.     Ed. 

by   W.    L.   Alexander.      3   vols. 

Edinburgh,  1862. 
KusTLiN,  Julius.— Life  of  Luther. 

Tr.  from  the  German.    New  York, 

1883. 
Kraussold,  L. — Die  Katechetik  fur 

Schule   und    Kirche.     Erlangen, 

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Kurtz,  John  Henry. — Text-Book 

of  Church    History.     [Tr.   by  J. 

H.  A.  Bomberger.]  2  vols.  Phila- 
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Lagarde,  Paul  d  e. —  Prophetae 
Chaldaice.     Leipsic,  1872. 

Lane,  Edward  William. — An  Ac- 
count of  the  Manners  and  Cus- 
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5th  ed.  Ed.  by  Edward  Stanley 
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Lange,  J.  P. — A  Commentary  on  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  Critical,  doc- 
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with  American  scholars  of  various 
evangelical  denominations.  25 
vols.  New  York,  1864-80. 
The  Life  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 
Ed.  by  Marcus  Dods.  4  vols. 
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Lavei.eye,  Emile  'de. —  L'lnstruc- 
tion  du  Peuple.     Paris,  1872. 

Lea,  Henry  Charles. — A  History 
of  the  Inquisition  of  the  Middle 
Ages.     3  vols.     New  York,  1888. 

Lecky,  William  Edward  Hart- 
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the  Eighteenth  Century.  6  vols. 
New  York,  1878. 

Levy,  Jakob. — Neuhebraisches  und 
chaldiiisches  Worterbuch  iiber 
die  Talmudim  und  Midraschim. 
Leipsic,  1876  ff. 

LiDDELL,  H.  G.,  and  ScoTT,  R.— .A. 
Greek-English  Lexicon.  7th  ed. 
New  York,  1883. 

Light  FOOT,  John. — Horae  He- 
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Robert  Gandell.  4  vols.  Ox- 
ford, 1859. 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


3^7 


LiGHTFOOT,  J.  B. — S.  Clement  of 
koine.  An  Appendix  containinfj 
the  newly  recovered  portions,  with 
introductions,  notes  and  transla- 
tions.    London, 1877. 

Littcll's  Living  Age.  Vol.  XL  Bos- 
ton, 1846. 

Locke,  John.  ^  Works.  3  vols. 
London,  1727. 

LoFTiK,  W.  J.— A  Ride  in  Egypt. 
London,  1879. 

LONCFKLLOW,         HENRY         WADS- 

WORTH. — Poetical  Works. 
Household  ed.  Boston  and  New 
York,  1887. 

Macduff,  J.  R. — Hosannas  of  the 
Children,  and  Other  Short  Ser- 
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New  York,  1B82. 

MACLEOD,  Alexander. — The  Won- 
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Children.  New  York,  n.  d. 
The  Gentle  Heart.  A  second  series 
of  "Talking  to  the  Children." 
New  York,  n.  d. 
The  Children's  Portion.  New  York, 
1885. 

MaHAFFY,  J.  p. — Social  Life  in 
Greece  from  Homer  to  Menander. 
5th  ed.     London, 1883. 

MahoN,  Lord  [Earl  of  Stanhope]. 
— History  of  England  from  the 
Peace  of  Utrecht  to  the  Peace  of 
Versailles,  1713-1783.  5th  ed., 
revised,  7  vols.     London,  1858. 

Maimonides,  Moses.  —  Yad  Ha- 
chazaqa.  Part  L  [Title-page 
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Marcus,  S.amuel. — Die  Padagogik 
des  israelitischen  Volkes,  von  der 
Patriarchenzeit  bis  auf  den  Tal- 
mud.    Vienna,  1877. 

Maskell,  WlLLlAi^L — Monumenta 
Ritualia  Ecclesiae  Angiicanae. 
2  vols.     London,  1846. 

Maurice,  F.  D. — The  Lord's  Prayer, 
the  Creed,  and  the  Command- 
ments :  A  manual  for  parents 
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added.  The  Order  of  the  Scrip- 
tures.    London, 1870. 


Mayer,    Jcjuann. — Geschichte    des 
Katechumcnats    und    der    Kate- 
chese    in  der  ersten  sechs  Jahr- 
hunderten.  Gekronte  Preisschrift. 
Kcmpten,  1868. 
McClintock,  John,  and  Strong, 
James. — Cyclopaedia  of  Biblical, 
Tiicological,     and     Ecclesiastical 
Literature.      10  vols.     New  York, 
1870-81. 
McEWEN,  Akel. — Half-Century  Ser- 
mon   on    Some    Changes    which 
have  Occurred  in  the  First  Con- 
gregational Society  in  New  Lon- 
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New  London,  1857. 
McLean,   Alexander. — Food    for 
the  Lambs;    or.  Sermons  to  Chil- 
dren.    New  York,  1868. 
Meade,  William. — Old  Churches, 
Ministers,    and    Families  of  Vir- 
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1861. 
Menorath  Ha-maor.     Venice,  1623. 
Merrill,   Selah. — Galilee    in    the 
Time  of  Christ.      Boston,  n.  d. 
[1881.] 
Methode   de   Saint-Sulpice,    dans  la 
Direction  des  Catechismes,  avec 
des   plans  d'instruction  pour  les 
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and  Lyons,  1874. 
Meyer,    H.    A.    W.  —  Critical    and 
E-xegetical  Handbook  to  the  Gos- 
pels of  Mark  and  Luke.     Tr.  from 
the  5th   German  ed.,  by  Robert 
Ernest   Wallis.       2   vols.,    Edin- 
burgh, 1880. 
Michaitd,  Joseph   Francis. — The 
History  of  the  Crusades.     Tr.  by 
W.    Robson.     A   new   ed.,  with 
preface  and  supplementary  chap- 
ter by   Hamilton  W.   Mabie.     3 
vols.     New  York,  1881. 
Midrash    Rabba    [including   the   five 
Megilloth].     [The  following  trea- 
tises are  cited  :    Bereshith  Rabba 
(on   Genesis) ;    Wayyiqra  Rabba 
(on  Leviticus) ;  Midrash  Tehillim 
(on  Psalms);  Qoheleth  Rabba  (on 
Ecclesiastes)  ;     Shir    Rabba    (on 
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388 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


Mills,  Charles. — The  History  of 
the  Crusades  for  the  Recovery 
and  Possession  of  the  Holy  Land. 
Philadelphia,  1844. 

Mitchell,  Alex.\nder  F. — The 
Westminster  Assembly:  Its  His- 
tory and  Standards.  The  Baird 
Lecture  for  1882.  Philadelphia, 
1884. 
Catechisms  of  the  Second  Reforma- 
tion. With  historical  introduc- 
tion and  biographical  notices. 
London,  1886. 

Mo  LI  TOR.  —  Philosophic  der  Ge- 
schichte  oder  iiber  die  Tradition. 
Frankfort-on-the-Main,  1827. 

Moore,  William  E. — The  Presby- 
terian Digest  of  1886:  A  com- 
pend  of  the  acts  and  deliverances 
of  the  General  Assembly  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United 
States  of  America.     Philadelphia. 

M LINGER,  Theodore  T. —  Lamps 
and  Paths.    6th  ed.    Boston,  1887. 

Neander,  Augustus. — The  Life  of 
Jesus  Christ.  Tr.  from  the  4th 
German  ed.,  by  J.  McClintock 
and  Chas.  E.  Blumenthal.  New 
York,  1848. 
General  History  of  the  Christian 
Religion  and  Church.  Tr.  by 
Joseph  Torrey.  2d  American  ed., 
5  vols.     Boston,  1851-54. 

Newton,  Richard.  —  [Sermons  to 
Children:  under  the  following 
titles:]  Rills  from  the  Fountain 
of  Life ;  The  Best  Things ;  The 
King's  Highway ;  The  Safe  Com- 
pass ;  Bible  Blessings  ;  The  Great 
Pilot;  Bible  Jewels;  Bible  Won- 
ders ;  Nature's  Wonders  ;  Leaves 
from  the  Tree  of  Life ;  The  Jew- 
ish Tabernacle ;  Giants  and  Won- 
derful Things ;  Rays  from  the 
Sun  of  Righteousness^  The  King 
in  his  Beauty ;  Pebbles  from  the 
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Ed.  bv  Philip  Schaff.  Buffalo, 
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Nicholls,  Sir  George.— A  History 
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nexion with  the  Condition  of  the 
People.     London,  1856. 

Norton,  John  N. — Sermons  to  Chil- 
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NOTT,  Samuel,  Jr.  —  Sermons  for 
Children,  Designed  to  Promote 
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Nowell,  Alexander.  • —  A  Cate- 
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Ed.  for  The  Parker  Society,  by 
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Olivet  Chapel  Year  Books:  Annual 
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Olshausen,  Hermann.  —  Biblical 
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6  vols.     New  York,  1866. 

Origen. — Opera  Omnia.  Ed.  by  C. 
H.  E.  Lommatzsch.  25  vols.  Ber- 
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Outlines  of  Sermons  to  Children,  with 
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Paniel,  Karl  Friedrich  Wil- 
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Papers  for  Teachers  on  Sunday 
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Peabody,  a.  p. — Sermons  for  Chil- 
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Perry,  G.  G.  —  A  History  of  the 
Church  of  England,  from  the  Ac- 
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Phillips,  Samuel. — Children  Well 
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BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


389 


Philo    Judaeus.  —  Opera    Omnia. 

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Plato.    See  Jowett,  B. 
PLUiMliR,  W.  S.— Short  Sermons   to 
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Pomfret,  Conn.,  The  150th   Anniver- 
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Porter,   Noah.— The  Educational 
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Power,  John  Carroll. — The  Rise 
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Pray,  Lewis  G.— The  History  of 
Sunday  Schools,  and  of  Religious 
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Presbyterian    Review,    The.     Vol.    \. 

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PRESSENSfe,  E.  PE. — The  Church  and 
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York,  1870. 
Christian  Life  and  Practice  in  the 
Early  Church.     [Vol.  IV.  of  The 
Early  Years  of  Christianity.]  New 
York,  1878. 
Prince,  T.,  Jr.— The  Christian  His- 
tory :  Containing  accounts  of  the 
revival   and   propagation   of   re- 
ligion in  Great  Britain  and  Amer- 
ica.    For  the  year  1743.    Boston, 
1744. 
Procter,  Francis.  —  A  History  of 
the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  with 
a  Rationale  of  its  Offices.    7th  ed., 
with  introductory  chapter  on  the 
history  of  the  American  liturg}', 
by  William  Stevens  Perry.     New 
York,  1868. 


Quick,  Robert  Herbert. — Essays 
on  Educational  Reformers.  Cin- 
cinnati, 1874. 


Ramsay,   E.    B. — Reminiscences-   of 
Scottish  Life  and  Character. 
From  the  7th  I'Minburgh  edition. 
Boston,  1861. 
Ranke,  Leopold.— The  History  of 
the     Popes,    their     Church     and 
State,  and  Especially  of  their  Con- 
flicts  with   Protestantism    m  the 
16th  and  17th  Centuries.     Tr.  by 
E.Foster.  3 vols.  London,  1837?. 
Rashi  [Rabbi  Solomon  ben  Isaao]. — 
'Al  ha-Torah.     5  vols.      Prague, 
1833-38. 
'Al    ha-Nebieem     u-Kethoobeem. 
15  vols.     Furth,  1842. 
Radmer,    Karl    von. — Geschichte 
der  Padagogik.     2d  ed.     4  vols. 
Stuttgart,  1846-54. 
Reed,  Charles.— The  Infant  Class 
in  the  Sunday  School :  An  essay. 
2d  ed.     London,  i860. 
Report,  First  Semi-annual,  of  the  Min- 
isters-at-Large  to  the  Benevolent 
P'raternity  of  Churches.     Boston, 
1835. 
Report  of  Proceedings  of  the  Second 
General   Council  of  the  Presby- 
terian Alliance,  Convened  at  Phil- 
adelphia, September,  1880.     Ed. 
by  John  B.  Dales  and  R.  M.  Pat- 
terson.     Philadelphia,  1880. 
[Report  of]   the  fifth  National  Sun- 
day-school   Convention,  held   at 
Indianapolis,   April   16-19,    1872. 
New  York. 
Report   of    the    New   York   Sunday- 
school   Institute   for  1868.     New 
York,  1869. 
Report   of    the    Proceedings    of   the 
General  Sunday  School  Conven- 
tion, Held  in  London,  September 
1-5,1862.    4th  ed.     London,  n.d. 
Report,  the  Annual,  of  the  Connecticut 
Sunday  School  Union  :   Presented 
at  the  second  annual  meeting  of 
the   Society,   holden    in   New- 
Haven,  Thursday,  May  24,  1826. 
Report,  the  Thirty-Seventh  Annual,  of 
the  Church  of  England  Sunday 
School  Institute,  1880-81.     Lon- 
don, 1881. 
Reqanati  [or  Recanati],  Mkna- 
hem.— '.M  ha-Torah.      Amster- 
dam, 1720. 


390 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


Reuss,  Eduard.  —  Die  Geschichte 
der  Heiligen  Schriften  Alten  Tes- 
taments.    Brunswick,  1881. 

RiEHM,  EnuARD  C.  Aug.  —  Hand- 
worterbuch  des  biblischen  Alter- 
tums.  2  vols.  Bielefeld  and 
Leipsic,  1884. 

Roberts,  William. — Memoirs  of 
the  Life  and  Correspondence  of 
Mrs.  Hannah  More.  2  vols. 
New  York,  1835. 

ROSENMULLER,    ERNST    FRIEDRICH 

Karl. — Das  alte  und  neue  Mor- 
genland.  6vols.   Leipsic,  1818-20. 

Ross,  A.  Hastings.  —  Sermons  for 
Children.  Boston  and  Chicago, 
1887. 

Ryle,  J.  C— The  Christian  Leaders 
of  the  Last  Century  ;  or,  England 
a  Hundred  Years  Ago.      London, 


SCHAFF,  Philip.  — The  Creeds  of 
Christendom.  With  a  history 
and  critical  notes.  3  vols.  New 
York,  1877. 
History  of  the  Christian  Church. 
New  ed.,  4  vols.  New  York, 
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A  Religious  Encyclopaedia.  Based 
on  the  Rcal-Encyclopadie  of  Her- 
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SCHLEUSNER,  J.   FRIEDER. — Novum 

Lexicon  Graeco-Latinum  in  No- 
vum Testamentum.  3ded.,  2  vols. 
Leipsic  and  London,  1808. 

Schumann,  J.  Chr.  Gottlob. — 
Lehrbuch  der  Padagogik.  2  vols. 
Hanover,  1875. 

Sch'urer,  Emil. — A  History  of  the 
Jewish  People  in  the  Time  of 
Jesus  Christ.  2d  Division.  Tr.  by 
Sophia  Taylor  and  Peter  Christie. 
3  vols.     Edinburgh,  1885. 

Sepi',  Joiiann  Nepomuk. — Das  Le- 
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Regensburg,  1865. 

Shaw,  Thomas  B.— A  Complete 
Manual  of  English  Literature. 
Ed.  by  William  Smith.  With  a 
sketch  of  American  literature,  by 
Henry  T.  Tuckerman.  New 
York,  1870. 


Simon,  Joseph.  —  L'Education  et 
r Instruction  des  Enfants  chez  les 
anciens  Juifs.  3d  ed.  Leipsic, 
1879. 

Smith,  William,  and  Cheetham, 
Samuel. — A  Dictionary  of  Chris- 
tian Antiquities.  2  vols.  Hart- 
ford, 1880. 

Smith,  William,  and  Wage, 
Henry. —  A  Dictionary  of  Chris- 
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and  Doctrines  during  the  First 
Eight  Centuries.  4  vols.  Lon- 
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South,  Robert. — Sermons  Preached 
upon  Several  Occasions.  A  new 
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Spangenberg,  August  Gottlieb. — 
The  Life  of  Nicholas  Lewis  Count 
Zinzendorf.  Tr.  by  Samuel  Jack- 
son.    London,  1838. 

[Speaker's  Commentary,  The]  The 
Holy  Bible  according  to  the  Au- 
thorized Version:  With  an  ex- 
planatory and  critical  commentary 
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by  bishops  and  other  clergy  of 
the  Anglican  Church.  Ed.  by  F. 
C.  Cook.  10  vols.  New  York, 
1872-81. 

Spooner,  Edward. —  Parson  and 
-  People;  or.  Incidents  in  the 
Every-day  Life  of  a  Clergyman. 
From  the  2d  London  ed.,  with  an 
introduction  by  an  American 
clergyman.     New  York,  1865. 

Sprague,  William  B.  —  Annals  of 
the  American  Pulpit.  9  vols. 
New  York,  1857. 

Stall,  Sylvanus.  —  Methods  of 
Church  Work,  Religious,  So- 
cial and  Financial.  New  York, 
1887. 

Stanley,  Arthur  Penrhyi^. — 
Sermons  for  Children,  including 
The  Beatitudes  and  The  Faithful 
Servant.     New  York,  1887. 

Stapfer,  Edmond. — Palestine  in  the 
Time  of  Christ.  Tr.  by  Annie 
Harwood  Holmden.  3d  ed.,  with 
maps  and  plans.  New  York, 
n.  d.     [1885.] 


BlBLIOUKArJIlt'AL   IXDEX. 


391 


Stkici.,  RonF.RT.  — The  Christian 
Teacher  in  Sunday  Schools.  Lon- 
don, 1867. 

Stkinmetz,  Andrew.  —  History  of 
the  Jesuits.  3  vols.  London, 
1848. 

SriKK.  Rudolf. — The  Words  of  the 
Lord  Jesus.  Tr.  by  W.  B.  Pope. 
8  vols.     Edinburgh,  1855. 

Strauss,  D.vvid  Friedrich. — The 
Life  of  Jesus  for  the  People. 
Authorized  translation.  2d  ed., 
2  vols.     London  and  Edinburgh, 

1879. 

Stryi'E,  John.  —  Memorials  of  the 
Most  Reverend  Father  in  God 
Thomas  Cranmer,  sometime 
Lord  Bishop  of  Canterbury.  2 
vols.  Oxford,  1812. 
The  Life  and  Acts  of  Matthew 
Parker,  the  first  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury  in  the  Reign  of  Queen 
Elizabeth.  In  4  books.  Oxford, 
1821. 
Annals  of  the  Reformation  and  Es- 
tablishment of  Religion,  and  other 
Various  Occurrences  in  the 
Church  of  England,  during  Queen 
Elizabeth's  Happy  Reign.  4  vols. 
Oxford,  1824. 

Sunday  School  Chronicle,  The.  Vol. 
IX.    London,  1880. 

Sundav  School  Times,  The.  Vols. 
I.-XXIX.    Philadelphia,  1859-87. 

Sunday  School  Visitant,  The.  Vol.  I. 
Utica,  1829. 

Talmud  Babli.  [The  following  trea- 
tises are  cited:  BabaBathra;  Baba 
Qamma;  Berakhoth  ;  Chagiga; 
Cheleq;  Erubin;  Kethuboth; 
Makkoth ;  Megilla;  Pesachim; 
Qiddushin;  Rosh  Ha-shana; 
Sanhedrin;  Shabbath  ;  Succa; 
Taanith;  Yoma.]  12  vols.  Sulz- 
bach,  1755. 

Talmud Yerushalmi.  [The  following 
treatises  are  cited:  Chagiga; 
Kethuboth;  Megilla;  Shabbath.] 
5  vols.  Zhitomir,  1860-67. 

Targum  of  Jonathan  on  the  Penta- 
teuch.    [See  Walton,  Brian.] 

Targum  of  Jonathan  on  the  Prophets. 
[See  Lagarde,  Paul  de.] 


Taylor,  Charles. — Sfiyings  of  t?ie 
lewish  Fathers  [Pircje  Aboth]. 
in  Hebrew  and  English,  with 
notes.     Cambridge,  1877. 

Taylor,  Jeremy. — The  History  of 
the  Life  and  Death  of  Jesus  Christ. 
New  ed.,  revised  by  J.  A.  Buck- 
ley.    London, i860. 

Thayer,  Joseimi  H.  —  A  Greek- 
English  Lexicon  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament :  Being  Grimm's  Wilke's 
Clavis  Novi  Testament!,  tr.,  re- 
vised and  enlarged.  New  York, 
1887. 

Todd,  [ohn. — Lectures  to  Children, 
Familiarly  Illustrating  Important 
Truth.      2d   ed.      Northampton, 

1834- 

Tremellius,  Immanuel,  and  Ju- 
nius, Franciscus.  —  Testament! 
Veteris  Biblia  Sacra.  Geneva, 
1630. 

Tru.MBULL,  H.  Clay. — Children  in 
the  Temple :  A  hand-book  for  the 
Sunday-school  concert,  and  a 
guide  for  the  children's  preacher. 
Springfield,  1869. 
A  Model  Superintendent:  A  sketch 
of  the  life,  character  and  methods 
of  work  of  Henry  P.  Haven  of 
the  International  Lesson  Com- 
mittee. New  York,  1880. 
Teaching  and  Teachers;  or.  The 
Sunday-school  Teacher's  Teach- 
ing Work,  and  the  Other  Work 
of  the  Sundav-school  Teacher. 
Philadelphia,  1885. 

Turner,  William,  Jun. — Sunday- 
Schools  Recommended:  In  a 
Sermon  preached  before  the  As- 
sociated Dissenting  Ministers  in 
the  Northern  Counties,  at  their 
annual  meeting,  at  Morpeth,  June 
13,  1786,  and  published  at  their 
request.  To  which  is  added,  an 
appendix,  concerning  the  forma- 
tion, conduct,  and  expence  of 
these  schools.     Newcastle,  1786. 

Tyerman,  L. — The  Life  and  Times 
of  the  Rev.  John  Wesley,  M.A., 
Founder  of  the  Methodists.  3  vols. 
New  York,  1872. 

Tyng,  Stephen  H.  —  Forty  Years' 
Experience  in  Sunday-schools. 
New  York,  i860. 


392 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


Uhlhorn,  Gerhard. — The  Conflict 
of  Christianity  with  Heathenism. 
Ed.  and  tr.,  with  the  author's 
sanction,  from  the  3d  German 
ed.,  by  Egbert  C.  Smyth  and  C. 
J.  H.  Ropes.  New  Yorl<,  1879. 
Christian  Charity  in  the  Ancient 
Church.  Tr.  with  the  Author's 
sanction.     New  York,  1883. 

Van  Gelder,   Elias. — Die  Volks- 

schule  des  jiidischen  Alterthums. 

Berhn,  1872. 
Van  Oosterzee,  J.  J. — The  Gospel 

according  to  Luke.     Tr.  by  PhiUp 

Schaff  and  C.  C.  Starbuck.     [In 

Schaff-Lange  Commentary:  Vol. 

II.  of  the  New  Testament.]     New 

York,  1868. 
Vincent,  John   H. —  The   Modern 

Sunday-school.     New  York  and 

Cincinnati,  1887. 
Vitringa,  Campegius.  —  De  Syna- 

goga  Vetere   libri  tres.      2d   ed. 

Weissenfels,  1726. 

Wadsworth,  Charles. — The  In- 
dispensableness  of  Early  Religious 
Culture  to  the  Permanence  and 
Prosperity  of  American  Institu- 
tions :  The  annual  sermon  in  be- 
half of  the  American  Sunday- 
School  Union,  April  3,  1859. 
Philadelphia. 

Walton,  Brian. — Biblia  Polyglotta. 
6  vols.     London,  1657. 

Watson,  W.  H.— The  First  Fifty 
Years  ofthe  Sunday  School.  Lon- 
don, n.  d. 
The  Sunday  School  Union  ;  its  His- 
tory and  Work.  With  a  me- 
morial sketch  of  the  author,  by 
W.  H.  Groser.     London,  1869. 

Watts,  Isaac— Works.  With 
memoirs  of  the  life  of  the  author, 
by  George  Burder.  6  vols.  Lon- 
don, 1 8  ID. 


Wayi.and,  Francis,— Encourage- 
ments to  Religious  Effort :  A  ser- 
mon delivered  at  the  request  of  the 
American  Sunday  School  UnioHj 
May  25,  1830.     Philadelphia. 

Weber,  Ferdinand.  —  System  der 
altsy nagogalen  palastinischen 
Theologie.  Ed.  by  Franz  De- 
litszch  and  Georg  Schnedermann. 
Leipsic,  1880. 

Weiss,  Bernhard. — The  Life  of 
Christ.  Tr.  by  John  Walter 
Hope.    3  vols.    Edinburgh,  1883. 

Wellhausen,  Julius. — Skizzen  und 
Vorarbeiten.  Heft  III.:  Reste 
Arabischen  Heidenthums.  Ber- 
lin, 1887. 

Wells,  James.— Bible  Echoes:  Ad- 
dresses to  the  young.  New  York, 
1878. 

Wesley,  John. — Works.  With  a  hfe 
of  the  author  by  John  Beecham, 
and  a  general  preface  by  Thomas 
Jackson,  iithed.,  15  vols.  Lon- 
don, 1856  f. 

Westminster  Assembly  of  Divines, 
Minutes  of  the  Sessions  of  the. 
Ed.  by  Alexander  F.  Mitchell  and 
John  Struthers.  Edinburgh  and 
London,  1874. 

Wetstein,  John  Jacob.  —  Novum 
Testamentum  Graecum,  cum 
variis  lectionibus  et  commentario. 
2  vols.     Amsterdam,  1751. 

Wette,  W.  M.  L.  DE. — Kurzgefasstes 
exegetischesHandbuch  zum  neues 
Testament.    2  vols.   Leipsic,  1845. 

Williams,  Thomas. — A  Discourse 
on  the  Official  Character  of  Na- 
thanael  Emmons.     Boston,  1851. 

Yalqut   Shimoni.       Frankfort-on-the- 

Main,  1687. 
Young,  Arthur. — A  Tour  in  Ireland. 

With  general  observations  on  the 

present   state    of  that   kingdom ; 

1776-79.     2  vols.     Dublin,  1780. 

Zohar.     Sulzbach,  1684. 


SCRIPTURAL   INDEX. 


GENESIS 

TEXT  PAGE 

1 :  27,  28 146 

4:  17 7 

5  :  24 357 

6:5-7 151 

12 5 

14:   14    .    .    .6,  151, 281 

15:  1-6 151 

18:   19 151 

19 S 

21 :  14 211 

22:  19 5 

24:  62 5 

34 :  I  ff S 

41  :  43 309 

EXODUS. 

18 24 

76 5 

LEVITICUS. 
1-9 13.  29 

NUMBERS. 

i-io 13 

11:  5.6 178 

IS  :  37-41 13 

DEUTERONOMY. 

6:4-9 13 

6:  6,  7 146 

II :  13-21 13 

31:  9-13 151 

33  :  46,  47 147 

JOSHUA. 
3 S 


JUDGES. 

TEXT  PAGE 

5:2 5 

20:  16 281 

1  SAMUEL. 

19:  i8f 6 

31:  9 310 

2  SAMUEL. 
1:9 310 

I  KINGS. 

20  :  40 352 

22:  34 351 

1  CHRONICLES. 
16:  22 28 

2  CHRONICLES. 

17  :  7-9 7 

28  :  24 6 

29  :  3 6 

NEHEMIAH. 
8:  1-8 7 

PSALMS. 

8:2 317 

34:  II    ....  332,334 

35:  10 23 

40:  10 310 

84:  7 16 

96:  2 310 

104:  18 371 

105:  15 28 

113-118, 136  ....    13 
127 :  3-s 146 


PROVERBS. 

TEXT  PAGE 

3:    18 22 

22  :  6 281 

ECCLESIASTES. 

7  :  10 179 

8  :   10 24 

9:7 27 

10:   15 23 

CANTICLES. 

6:11 19 

7:  12,  13 6 

ISAIAH. 

28  :  9 28 

30 :  20 19 

40 :  3-5 368 

40  :  9 310 

47 28 

JEREMIAH. 

3:4 212 

23 :  29 22 

48 :  10 14 

DANIEL. 

3  :  1-30 319 

3:4 309 

12:  3 27 

HAGGAI. 
2:9 6 

MALACHI. 
2 :  IS 146 

MATTHEW. 

3:1-3 309 

3:  1-12 33 

393 


394 


SCRIPTURAL  INDEX. 


TEXT                 PAGE 
4:  23 32 

5  :  1-48 283 

6  :  1-34 283 

7 :  1-29 283 

9:  35 32 

10:  1-42 283 

10:  2-4 283 

10:  7 309 

10:  27  .  .  .  ig,  220, 309 

10:  31 352 

11:  I 32 

11:  5 309 

13:  36 33 

13:  54 33 

15:  6 313 

17:  25 33 

18:  i-S 374 

18:  3 313 

19:  4-6 146 

20:  1-7 316 

21:  15-17 375 

21 :  16 317 

21;  23-46  .  .  .  .33,34 

22 34 

22:  1-46 33 

23:  1-39 34 

28:  I9(R.V.)  .  .  .375 
28  :  19,  20 36 

MARK. 

1:1-8 33 

1:4 309 

1:7 309 

i:  14 32 

1 :  21 32 

1 :  22 32 

1 :  39 32 

2:  13 33 

3:  13-19 283 

3 :  14 309 

4:  1.2 33 

5:  41 352 

6:2 33 

6:  6,  34 32 

6:  7-13 283 

6:  34 32 

7:  13 313 

9 :  33-37 374 

9:  33-50 33 

9:  37  (R.V.)  ...  374 

10:  I 32 

10:  13-16  .  .  .  332,374 
10:  14  (R.V.)  .  .  .  376 


TEXT                                             PAGE 
10:    15 313 

10:  15  (R.V.)  ...  374 

12:  35 33 

14:  49 33 

LUKE. 

1:4 41.51 

2:  42-47 29 

2 :  46 30 

2:  47 31 

3:  1-9 33 

3:  3.4 309 

3 :  10-18 33 

3:  18  (R.V.)  .   .    .309 

4:   15 33 

4:   18 309 

4:  31-33 33 

4:  43  (R.V.)    .    .    .309 

6:  6 33 

6 :   12-16 283 

7:  22 309 

7:  36-50 33 

9  :  1-6 283 

9 :  46-4S 374 

10:  21 377 

10 :  38-42 33 

10:  39 18 

13:  10 33 

13 :  22 32 

16:  16  (R.  V.)  .    .    .  309 

18:  15-17 332 

18:  17 313 

19:  5-27 33 

19:  47 33 

20 :  I 32 

21 :  37 33 

JOHN. 

1 :  35-51 283 

1 :  40-42 220 

1 :  45,  46 220 

4 :  1-42 32 

4 :  28-30 220 

6:  59 33 

7:  14 33 

7:  14.  IS 33 

7:  28 33 

15:  8 28S 

8:2 33 

8  :  20 33 

18 :  20 33 

21 :  IS-17 375 

21:  25 34 


TEXT  PAGE 

ACTS. 

2 .  1-40 53 

4:2 310 

5  :  29 38 

5:  42 38,220 

8:4 220 

8:5 309 

9:  2 17 

9:  20 17, 309 

10:  36  (R.V.)  .  .  .309 

10:  42 309 

13:  I 41 

13:  S 17.310 

13:  14 17 

13:  15 17 

13:  43 17 

14:  I -i-l 

14:  15  (R.V.)  .  .  .309 

15:  21 17.309 

15:  35 38 

16:  10 309 

17:  I 17 

17:  1-3 38 

17:  10-13 310 

17:  II,  12 39 

17:  17 17.  39 

18:  i-ii 39 

18:  4 17 

18:  7 17 

18:  8 17 

18:  17 17 

18  :  24-26 220 

18:  25 41.  SI 

18 :  26 17 

19:  i-io 40 

19 :  13 309 

20:  35 288 

22:  3 18,38 

22 :  19 17 

24:  12 17 

26:  II 17 

28:  30, 31 40 

ROMANS. 

I  :  16 352 

8  :  28 147 

10:  15 309 

12:  7 41 

I  CORINTHIANS. 

1 :  23,  24 309 

9:  14 310 

12:  28,  29 41 


SCRIPTURAL  INDEX. 


395 


TEXT  PAGE 

'4:     13 358 

14:    20 53.301 

14:  33 147 

15 :  I 309 

2  CORINTHIANS. 

4:5 309 

11:4 309 

11:7 309 

GALATIANS. 

1:8 309 

i:  II 309 

4:5 212 

4:7 211 

4:  31 211 

EPHESIANS. 

2:  17 309 

2:  19 153 

3:8 309 

3:  IS 153 

4:4-6 153 


TEXT 
4: 


II,  12 
H-I3 


PAGE 
.  41 
•  247 
.  284 
.  212 


IS,  16 


41 
332 


rillLIPPIANS. 
i:  15-18 310 


COLOSSIANS. 


1 :  24-28 

i:  28  . 

3:  16  . 

3:  20  . 

4:  6    . 


310 

41 
41 
41 
59 


TEXT  PAGfl 

2  TIMOTHY. 

1:5 152 

i:  II  (R.  V.  niarg.)  .  309 

3:   15 42,153 

3  :   15.  I'J 193 

3:   16,  17 42 

HEBREWS. 

3:6 153 

4:  2  (R.  V.)  ....  309 
4:  6(R.V.)  ...    .309 

8  :  10,  II 220 

11:6 351 

13:  8(R.  V.)    .    .    .376 

I   PETER. 
I  :  12  (R.  V.)    .    .    .  309 
i:  25  (R.  V.)    .    .    .  309 


I  TIMOTHY.  2   JOHN. 

1:5 332    I  ...    ." 41 

2  :  7  ( R.  V.  inarg.)   .  309  I 

3:2 41  REVELATION. 

3:  15 153    16:  13 102 


TOPICAL   INDEX. 


Aaron,  learning  and  teaching,  25  f. 

Abbey  and  Overton's  history ,  99  f. ,  104. 

Abooyah,  Ehsha  b.,  his  maxim,  27. 

Abraham  at  school,  5  ;  his  trained  ser- 
vants, 6  f.,  151,  280  f.,  285. 

Accommodations  for  the  Sunday- 
school  to  be  provided  by  the  church , 
209  f. 

Admission  of  new  scholars,  240  f., 
258  f. 

Adults:  included  in  Sunday-school 
membership,  188 f.,  191-196;  preach- 
ing to,  does  not  reach  the  children, 
256  f.,  312-315. 

Advance  study  of  the  lesson,  230. 

Ahaz,  the  enemy  of  Bible  schools,  6. 

Albigenses,  as  Bible  students,  65. 

Alexander,  Archibald :  on  Sunday- 
school  membership,  192,  194 ;  on 
the  family  and  the  Sunday-school, 
148  f.,  171  f.,179. 

Alexandria,  the  great  school  at,  56-58, 
220,  250. 

Alford,  Dean,  on  the  word  "  teach- 
ing," 36- 

Alleine,  Joseph,  the  school  of,  112. 

Allen,  Franklin,  the  Sunday-school 
methods  of,  240  f. 

Alpine  shepherd,  the,  example  of,  190. 

America:  family  religion  in,  165-176, 
179-182;  mtroduction  of  the  Sun- 
day-school into,  122  f.,  165;  Sun- 
day-school progress  in,  122-142, 
188-190. 

American  Board  of  Commissioners 
for  Foreign  Missions:  its  early  mis- 
sionaries, 334. 

American  observer,  an,  on  family  re- 
ligion in  England,  155  f. 


American  Sunday-school,  the  :  differs 
from  the  English  school,  127,  156  f, 
187  f.,  304  f ;  foreign  opinions  con- 
cerning, 132  f. ;  its  founders,  122  f.; 
its  introduction  into  Europe,  134- 
136 ;  its  work  for  Christianity,  122  f. ; 
progress  of,  122-142,  188-190. 

American  Sunday  School  Union,  the, 
123-125,  131,  189,  305. 

Amoralm,  in  synagogue  schools,  19. 

Analogies  to  the  influence  of  the  Sun- 
day-school on  the  family,  176  f. 

Andrew,  the  apostle,  219  f. 

Andrewes,  Lancelot,  on  Julian  the 
Apostate,  49,  73. 

Anniversary  of  the  Pomfret  Church, 
129  f. 

Apollos,  the  preacher,  instructed,  41, 
220. 

Apostles'  Creed,  the,  259,  361,  373. 

Apostolic  Church,  the:  teaching  in, 
37-44.  47-49- 

Appliances,  Sunday-school,  to  be  paid 
for  by  the  church,  210  f. 

Application  of  a  children's  sermon 
should  be  specific,  363-366. 

Aquaviva,  the  Jesuit,  69. 

Architecture,  Sunday-school,  51,  209f. 

Armenia,  early  Sunday-schools  in,  62, 
III. 

Arminian  Magazine,  113. 

Armstrong,  Wm.,  sermons  of,  329. 

Arnot,  Wm.,  sermons  of,  337. 

Asbury,  Bp.,  Sunday-school  organized 
by,  122. 

Asbury,  England,  a  Sunday-school  in, 
112. 

Ascham,  Roger,  his  protest  against 
rote  learning,  83. 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


397 


Attendance:  of  the  children  on  the 
church,  312-315,  372-374;  of  the 
pastor  on  the  Sunday-school,  263, 
266,  269. 

Attention  of  children,  the:  can  be  held 
by  the  preacher,  370-372. 

Audience  of  children,  an:  gain  of  ques- 
tioning, 366-369. 

Augustine  :  his  methods  :  in  catechis- 
ing, 59  f . ;  in  preaching,  332  f.,  367. 

Authority  of  the  church  over  the  Sun- 
day-school, 4,  iqi. 

Auxiliary  training  agencies  :  examples 
of,  286-296,  300 ;  importance  of,  in 
church  work,  283-286,  297-300,  306; 
truths  concerning,  300-306. 

B.\CHF.LOR,  a,  as  primary-class  teach- 
er, 222  f. 

Bacon,  Lord:  his  precocity,  31. 

Bagdad,  child  crusaders  at,  319. 

Ball,  Miss  Hannah,  Sunday-school 
started  by,  112. 

Baltimore,  Sunday-school  beginnings 
in,  123. 

Band  of  Hope:  its  nature  and  scope, 
291. 

Baptist  Church,  the:  management  of 
the  Sunday-school  in,  205  f. ;  polity 
of,  247;  use  of  the  Young  People's 
Prayer  Meeting  by,  293. 

Barnes,  Albert :  on  the  growth  of  ju- 
venile literature,  126;  on  the  Sun- 
day-school and  the  family,  149. 

Basil,  St. :  his  testimony  to  help  of 
Church  to  family,  153. 

Bath,  England,  beginnings  of  Sunday- 
school  in,  112. 

Bath-Qol,  a  voice  of  God,  27. 

Baxter,  Richard:  his  estimate  of  inter- 
locutory preaching,  311  f. ;  his  opin- 
ion of  catechising,  84  f. 

"Bearing  the  Reproach  of  Christ," 
John  Calvin's  sermon  on,  351. 

Beatitudes,  the  :  recitation  of,  259,  373. 

Beck,  J.  T.:  quotation  from  his  Pas- 
toral Theology,  53. 

Bedale,  England,  Sunday-school  be- 
ginnings in,  112. 

Beecher,  Henry  Ward:  his  Sunday- 
school  convention  address,  256-258. 

Beecher,  Lvman  :  on  family  religion 
in  New  England,  161,  180;  on  mor- 
als in  the  eighteenth  century,  102  f., 


123  f ;  on  "The  Bible  a  Code  of 
Laws,"  351. 

Beginnings,  Sunday-school :  in  Amer- 
ica, 87,  89,  112,  122-134;  in  early 
Christianity,  36-63;  m  foreign  lands 
generally,  134-136  ;  in  Great  Britain, 
109-121 ;  in  Jewish  history,  6-11; 
in  modern  Europe,  106;  in  refor- 
mation times,  67-92;  in  tradition,  4-6. 

Bellamy,  Joseph,  Sunday-school  or- 
ganized by,  112. 

Bellarmine,  Cardinal:  his  Sunday- 
school  work,  71  f. 

Bellows,  illustration  of  the,  92  f. 

Benham,  A. :  accords  honor  to  Albert 
Woodruff,  135. 

Benjamites,  the  seven  hundred,  281, 
285. 

Beth-ha-Midrash:  the  House  of  Study, 

IS.  19.29.  38  f- 

Beth-ha-Sepher:  the  House  of  the 
Book,  15. 

Bethlehem,  Conn.,  Sunday-school  be- 
ginnings in,  112. 

Bethune,  Divie,  Sunday-school  work 
of,  123,  128. 

Bible-class:  for  training  teachers,  a, 
230 ;  should  the  pastor  teach  a,  272 ; 
the  Lecturer's,  196. 

Bible  Correspondence  Schools,  293. 

Bible-reading   and    Prayer  Alliances, 

293- 

Bible-schools  in  Palestine,  7-31. 

Bible-schools,  Jewish.  See  Jewish 
Bible-schools. 

Bible-study:  by  adults,  192-196;  in 
apostolic  schools,  41  f. ;  in  early 
Christian  schools,  61-63;  ''^  Jewish 
schools,  11-13,  19,  28  f ,  43;  in  Lu- 
ther's schools,  77  f. ;  in  Moravian 
schools,  94;  in  the  family,  154-183; 
in  the  modern  Sunday-school,  4, 
ii9r,  126^,136-142;  intheschools 
of  the  Waldenses,  64-66 ;  its  influ- 
ence on  revivals,  127;  promoted  by 
the  International  lessons,    136-142. 

"  Bible,  The,  a  Code  of  Laws,"  Ly- 
man Beecher's  sermon  on,  351. 

Bigg,  Charles :  his  estimate  of  Ori- 
gen,  57. 

Bingham  :  reference  to  his  Antiquities, 
51,  61  ff.,  333. 

Blaikie,  W.  G.,  on  preaching  to  chil- 
dren, 366,  369  f. 


398 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


Blair,   David,   Sunday-school   started 

by,  112. 
Blake,  Mortimer,  children's  sermons 

of,  337- 

Blowing  out  the  light,  a  child's  ques- 
tion concerning,  350. 

Blue  Ribbon  Army,  291. 

Boehler,  Peter :  his  impress  on  John 
Wesley,  107. 

Bohemian  Brethren,  Bible-school  idea 
among  the,  65. 

Bolton  :  James  Heys's  Sunday-school 
at,  112;  voluntary  teaching  at,  119. 

Bonar,  A.  A.,  children's  sermons  of, 

337- 
Bonar,  Horatius,   children  s  sermons 

of.  337- 
Borromeo,  St.   Carlo,  Sunday-school 

work  of,  71  f. 
Boston,    children's   services   in,   322 ; 

preaching  to  children  in,  335. 
Bowdoin  College  :  D.  R.  Goodwin  and 

Longfellow  in,  354;  religion  in,  166. 
Boyd,  Robert,   children's  sermons  of, 

337- 

Boys'  Brigade,  291. 

Boys'  Circles,  294  f. 

Boys,  lady  teachers  for,  223. 

Bradley,  Dean  :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 324. 

Breath  of  the  children,  Jewish  esti- 
mate of,  26  f. 

Brechin,  Scotland,  Sunday-school 
beginnings  in,  112. 

Breed,   Wm.    P.,   children's  sermons 

of,  337- 

Brethren  of  the  Common  Life,  Bible- 
school  idea  among  the,  65. 

Bright,  Ireland,  Sunday-school  begin- 
nings in,  112. 

Bright,  John:  his  tribute  to  Sunday- 
schools,  121. 

Brighton,  Church  Congress  at,  323. 

British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society, 
the :  owed  its  origin  to  the  Sunday- 
school,  120. 

Broadus,  John  A.,  on  preaching  to 
children,  325  f.,  344,  353. 

Brooklyn,  Sunday-school  convention 
at,  256. 

Brooks,  Phillips:  his  estimate  of  the 
children's  church,  340  f. 

Brown,  G.  Baldwin:  his  view  of  early 
church  methods,  47. 


Buell,  Marcus  D.,  children's  sermons 
of,  337- 

Buisson,  F. :  his  tribute  to  the  Ameri- 
can Sunday-school,  132  f. 

Bullard,  Asa:  tells  of  large  Sunday- 
school  attendance,  195. 

Bunsen,  Baron:  his  estimate  of  the 
school  in  early  church  plans,  48. 

Burns,  Robert:  his  "Cotter's  Satur- 
day Night,"  168. 

Bushnell,  Horace:    his  sermon-titles, 

86,  351;  on  a  child's  capacity  for 
great  truths,  219,  341  f  ;  on  song- 
worship  for  children,  197  f. 

Cairns,  John:  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 337. 

Calvin,  John  :  his  catechisms,  68  ;  his 
estimate  of  work  for  children,  106; 
his  sermon  on  "Bearing  the  Re- 
proach of  Christ,"  351. 

Capacity  of  a  child  to  comprehend 
great  truths,  218  f. 

Cappadocia,  Bible  schools  in,  62. 

Catechetical  teaching:  a  necessary 
condition  of  the  Church's  progress, 
49,  64,  66-68,  73,  89,  104;  approved 
in  the  divine  plan  of  religious  in- 
struction, 4-7,  20-28;  30-39;  de- 
cline of:  before  the  Dark  Ages,  63- 
65;    after  the   Reformation,    73-76, 

87,  94,  104  f. ;  in  New  England, 
88  f. ;  essential  to  a  Sunday-school, 
3  f . ;  Jesus'  part  in,  29-31;  the 
method  of  the  Jewish  Bible-schools, 
20-26 ;  use  of,  by  Jesus,  32-36  ;  by 
the  apostles,  37-41;  by  the  Early 
Church,  48-63;  by  the  Waldenses 
and  others,  64-66;  by  the  Reform- 
ers, 68,  74  f. ;  by  the  Church  of 
Rome,  69-72;  by  the  Moravians 
and  others,  94;  was  by  form  of 
question  and  answer,  20-24,  29,  32- 
41,  43,  52-61,  75,  78. 

Catechif.mal  service  :  itsplace  in  church 
plans,  3  f.,  48. 

Catechisms:  early,  64  f . ;  intended  as 
aids  to  interlocutory  teaching,  68, 
72,  75-88  ;  prepared  by  Luther  and 
his  co-workers,  68,  77  f. ;  by  Calvin, 
68 ;  by  the  Council  of  Trent,  70  f. ; 
Ijy  Bellarmine,  72;  by  Protestant 
Church  leaders,  75;  by  the  Church 
of  Jiugland,  78-80;   by  the  West- 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


399 


minster  Assembly,  8i ;  by  Baxter, 
84;  by  Wiitls  and  others,  85-87; 
use  of,  degenerated  into  rote-learn- 
ing, 75.  87  f. 

Catechismus  Puerorum,  79-81. 

Catechumenical  discour.->es :  questions 
in  one  of  Augustine's,  60 ;  unbroken 
in  form,  52,  61,  78. 

Catechumenical  schools,  48-51,  56-58, 
61-63,  250. 

Catterick,  England,  Sunday-school 
beginnings  in,  112. 

Cecil,  Richard :  his  estimate  of  talks 
to  children,  338  f. 

Celsus :  he  charges  Christians  with 
Sunday-school  evangelism,  50. 

Centenary  of  modern  Sunday-schools, 
109,  114,  117,  119,  133,  135. 

Centennial  exposition,  the:  report  of 
the  French  educational  commission 
to,  132  f. 

Certificates  of  membership  and  recog- 
nition in  Sunday-school,  200. 

Chabcrim,  assistants  in  Jewish  Bible- 
schools,  19. 

Chalmers,  Thomas :  his  sermon  on 
"The  Expulsive  Power  of  a  New 
Affection,"  358  ;  on  family  religion 
in  Scotland,  161  f. ;  on  the  Sunday- 
school  and  the  family,  147  f. 

Charity  schools  in  the  early  church, 

63.  153- 

Charles,  Thomas,  of  Bala:  Sunday- 
schools  founded  by,  164  f. 

Charleston,  Sunday-school  beginnings 
in,  123. 

Chautauqua  Circles,  293. 

Chedorlaomer,  Abraham's  pursuit  of, 
281. 

Chesebrough,  A.  S.,  on  "  The  Culture 
of  Child  Piety,"  297-300. 

Chief  end  of  man,  the:  child-ideas  of, 

83- 
Children :  can  they  reason,  125  f. ; 
capacity  of,  for  comprehending  great 
truths,  218  f.,  348-355  ;  church  at- 
tendance by:  enforced,  312-315; 
secured,  372  f . ;  collective  instruc- 
tion of,  gain  of,  177,  196-199;  im- 
portance of  caring  for,  67,  106-108, 
256  f.,  299  f.;  impressibility  of,  27, 
311,  315-320,  326;  in  the  schools: 
of  the  Jews,  9,  12,  19,  26-28,  43, 
152  f.,    183,    191  f. ;    of  the   Early 


Church,  37,  41  f.,  48,  50  f.,  61-63, 
153,  375  ;  of  the  Church  of  Rome, 
69-73  ;  of  tbe  Reformers,  74  f.,  94; 
neglected,  schools  for,  187  f. ;  opin- 
ion of:  Luther's,  67;  Wesley's, 
107  f . ;  Stephen  H.  Tvng's,  256  f . ; 
C.  L.  Goodell's,  264  f.';  A.  E.  Kit- 
tredge's,  266  ;  A.  S.  Chesebrough's, 
299  f. ;  preaching  to  (see  Preaching 
to  children)  ;  progress  in  the  care 
for,  123-127,  151  f,  183;  religious 
instruction  of,  by  parents  (see  P"am- 
ily  religion) ;  rote-learning  by,  un- 
desirable, 76-89;  separate  services 
for,  321-327  ;  Sunday-school  mem- 
bership includes,  4,  187-T92,  196- 
199,  204  f. ;  training  of,  281  f.,  284, 
287-291,  296,  298-300;  Wesley's 
work  among,  106-109,  320;  Zinzen- 
dorfs  work  among,  106  f,  320. 

Children's  church,  the,  321-327,  340 f. 

Children's  Day  ;  its  modern  recogni- 
tion, 376. 

Children's  Special  Service  Mission, 
the,  320  f. 

China,  Yung  Wing's  work  for,  365. 

Choice  between  pulpit  sermonizing 
and  Sunday-school    teaching,  312- 

Christian  Church,  the :  catechetical 
teaching  in,  37-44.  48-75.  94.  104; 
decline  of:  in  the  Middle  Ages, 
63-65;  after  the  Reformation,  68, 
97-103,  120,142;  exaltation  of  child- 
hood by,  373-377;  extension  of,  by 
means  of  the  Sunday-school,  50  f., 
62f.,  199,  203-205,  219  f.;  membersof, 
should  all  be  in  the  Sunday-school, 
191-195;  mission  of,  to  be  the  salt 
of  the  earth,  103;  placeofthe  family 
in,  145-147,  150-153.  183;  Sunday- 
schools  included  in  the  diviuely  or- 
dained constitution  of,  4,  36  f.,  43, 
109,  183  f,  192,  197,  313;  syna- 
gogue-methods used  in,  37-41,47; 
teaching,  its  law  of  progress  by : 
stated,  66  f.,  8g  ;  illustrated  by  the 
Dark  Ages,  63  f. ;  by  the  Waldenses, 
64-66;  by  the  Reformation,  67  f . ; 
by  the  Church  of  Rome,  69-73;  by 
the  modern  Sunday-school  move- 
ment, III,  115-121,  142;  training 
agencies,  its  need  and  use  of,  280, 
283-306. 


400 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


Christian  Spectator,  The :  its  testi- 
mony concerning  decline  of  family 
religion,  170. 

Christian  union,  promoted  by  the  In- 
ternational lessons,  140. 

Christmas  Sunday-school  giving,  290. 

Chrysostom,  St. :  questions  in  his  hom- 
ilies, 55  ;  his  testimony  concerning 
early  charity  schools,  153. 

Church  Congress  at  Brighton,  the,  323. 

Church  edifices  designed  for  catecheti- 
cal instruction,  51. 

Churches  organized  as  a  result  of  Sun- 
day-schools, 130  f. 

Church  Missionary  Society,  the:  its 
organization  induced  by  the  Sunday- 
school,  120. 

Church  of  England.  See  England, 
Church  of. 

Church  of  England  Catechism,  iig. 

Church  of  Rome.  See  Rome,  Church 
of. 

Church  of  Scotland.  See  Scotland, 
Church  of. 

Church  Sunday  School  Magazine,  the : 
its  symposium  on  religious  instruc- 
tion among  the  upper  classes  in 
England,  157 ;  its  words  for  the 
promotion  of  child  piety,  297  f. 

Cicero's  maxim  on  teaching,  57. 

Claim  of  the  church  to  control  the 
Sunday-school:  asserted,  191 ;  in- 
volves the  duty  of  support,  208-211. 

Clark,  F.  E. :  founder  of  the  Young 
People's  Society  of  Christian  En- 
deavor, 295  f. ;  on  prayer-meeting 
edification,  300  f.  , 

Classes  in  Sunday-school,  an  essential, 
4,  37,  215,  231. 

Class  exercises,  gain  of,  196-199. 

Classification  of  scholars  :  in  the  Jewish 
Bible-school,  12,  15,  191  f. ;  in  the 
Sunday-school,  119,  192. 

Class-training  agency  :  need  of,  in  the 
Church  of  England,  297  f. ;  use  of, 
by  H.  P.  Haven,  294;  by  Wesley 
and  the  Methodist  Church,  93,  106- 
109,  287,  293;  by  Zinzendorf  and 
the  Moravian  Church,  106  f.,  287; 
Wesley's  adoption  of,  106  f.,  287. 

Clement  of  Alexandria,  on  teaching 
methods,  57. 

Clement  of  Rome,  the  so-called  Sec- 
ond Epistle  of,  55. 


Closing  exercises,  the  pastor's  place 
in,  269-272. 

Coan,  Titus,  on  Hawaiian  child-train- 
ing, 289. 

Cogswell,  William,  on  family  religion, 
169  f.,  180. 

Cohen,  on  synagogues  in  Jerusalem,  11. 

Coit,  T.  W.,  on  Christian  "instruc- 
tion," 42  f. 

Cold  Water  Army,  the,  290  f. 

College  revivals,  167  f. 

Colleges  of  America :  state  of  religion 
in,  prior  to  the  modern  Sunday- 
school,  166  f. 

Columbia  College,  religion  in,  a  cen- 
tury ago,  167. 

Columbia,  Conn.,  Sunday-school  in, 
112. 

Comber,  Dean :  his  opinion  of  cate- 
chising, 91. 

Comenius,  on  teaching,  83. 

Commentaries,  method  of:  of  the 
Christian  Fathers,  55-58  ;  of  Phi- 
lo,  56. 

"  Conference,"  the  French  term  for 
preaching  service,  369. 

Conflict  between  the  Sunday-school 
and  the  church,  how  avoided,  211  f. 

Congregational  Bible-study,  192-196. 

Congregational  Church  :  management 
of  the  Sunday-school  in,  205  f . ; 
polity  of,  247;  use  of  the  Young 
People's  Prayer  Meeting  by,  293. 

Consideration  for  subordinates,  a  pas- 
tor's, 272-275. 

Control  of  the  Sunday-school  by  the 
church,  206  f. 

Convention  of  1858,  the  Brooklyn 
Sunday-school,  256-258. 

Cook,  Joseph,  on  C.  L.  Goodell,  263. 

Cost  of  running  a  Sunday-school,  211. 

Cotter's  .Saturday  Night,  The:  its 
teachings,  168. 

Cotton,  John,  on  the  misuse  of  cate- 
chising, 88. 

Council  of  Constantinople  :  its  canon 
concerning  schools,  62  f. 

Council  of  Trent :  its  plans  for  arrest- 
ing the  Reformation,  70  f. 

Country  Sunday-school,  a  :  how  to  in- 
crease, 202-205 ;  the  pastor's  review 
in,  271. 

Country  teachers'-meetir.g,  a,  237. 

Covenanting  of  teachers,  238  f ,  243. 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


401 


Co-work  between  pastor  and  super- 
intendent, 272-275. 

Cowper,  William  :  his  support  of  the 
Sunday-school  movement,  114. 

Cox,  Samuel:  his  preaching  to  chil- 
dren, 336,  339  f.,  352,  359,  372. 

Cranmer,  Thomas :  recognized  the 
importance  of  church-schools,  68. 

Creed,  the:  its  recital  not  permitted 
to  catechumens,  329. 

Crenshaw,  Thomas,  Sunday-school  at 
the  house  of,  122  I. 

Criticism  of  the  Sunday-school :  for  its 
supposed  injury  to  family  and 
church,  145,  150;  for  its  use  of 
young  teachers,  220-222. 

Crusade,  the  Children's,  317-319. 

"  Culture  of  Child  Piety,  The,"  297- 
300. 

Currie,  James,  on  the  misuse  of  "  the 
Catechism,"  87. 

Curry,  Daniel,  on  reaching  the  parents 
through  the  children,  190. 

Cyril   of  Jerusalem :    his  sermon  on 

"The  Creator  Seen  in  the  Creations," 
351- 

DanfortiI,  Samuel,  on  religious  de- 
cline in  New  England,  182. 

David's  preaching  to  children,  332. 

Davids,  Louisa:  her  plea  for  chil- 
dren's services,  322  f 

Day  of  Atonement,  the:  the  High 
Priest's  training  for,  282  f. 

Deborah  and  Barak,  Bible-schools  in 
the  time  of,  5. 

Decline,  religious.  See  Religious  de- 
cline. 

Defects  in  Sunday-school  manage- 
ment, why  not  dwelt  upon,  183  f. 

Delivery  of  sermons  to  children,  366- 
372. 

Departure  from  catechism  teachings 
in  New  England,  89. 

Depreciation  of  sermons  to  children, 
340  f ,  376. 

Deutsch,  Emanuel,  on  Jewish  Bible 
schools,  8,  22. 

Didaskaiia,  colloquial  preaching,  53  f. 

Difficulty  :  of  rightly  preaching  to  chil- 
dren, 337-340,  343  i.\  of  securing 
children's  services,  320. 

Dignity  of  the  pulpit,  does  preaching 
to  children  lower,  331  f.,  376. 

Digression  for  the  children,  330-333. 


Dinah's  Bible-school  truancy,  5. 
Direction  of  the  Sunday-school,  the 

church  responsible  for,  207  f. 
Discipline,  gain  of,  285. 
Doagh,  Ireland, Sunday-schoolat,  112. 
Doddridge,   Philip:    his  digression  to 

the  children,  333;  his  opinion  of  a 

child's  religious  capacity,  125. 
Doohttel,    Thomas,    on    catechising, 

225,  228. 
Dorchester,  Daniel,  on  morals  in  the 

eighteenth  century,  100  f.,  180. 
Dukes  :  his  explanation  of  the  saying 

about  school-children,  26. 
Dursley,  England,  Sunday-school  at, 

112. 
"  Duty  and  Rewards  of  Patience,  The," 

Terlullian's  sermon  on,  351. 
Dwight,  Timothy,  Sr.,  on  morals  in 

the  eighteenth  century,  102,  180. 
Dying  man's  ignorance,  a,  228  f. 
Dykes,  J.  Oswald:  his  sermon  to  chil- 
dren, 336. 

Eaton,  T.  T.  :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 337. 

Edersheim,  Alfred,  on  schools  in  Pal- 
estine, 9,  28-30. 

Edification,  prayer-meeting,  300-302. 

Edmond,  John  :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 336. 

Education,  popvilar,  in  England:  its 
revival  brought  about  by  the  Sun- 
day-school, 105,  117-120. 

Edwards,  Jonathan  :  revivals  under, 
loi,  106,  180,  320. 

Egypt :  good  old  days  in,  178  f. ;  schools 
in,  62,  III. 

Election  of  superintendent,  206  f. 

Emmons,  Nathanael:  his  funeral  ser- 
mon, lOI. 

Enforcing  church  attendance  on  chil- 
dren, 312-315,  322  f. 

England,  Church  of:  its  provision  for 
catechising,  74-76,  78-81  ;  its  state 
in  the  eighteenth  century,  99, 149  f. ; 
its  use  of  children's  services,  321, 
323  f.,  327;  of  guilds,  etc.,  291-293, 
297  f. ;  the  modern  Sunday-school 
movement  began  within,  113. 

England  :  family  religion  in,  154-159; 
phice  of  the  Sunday-school  in,  156- 
159,  187  f. 

Enlistment :  one  factor  in  the  training 
process,  279  f ,  283. 


26 


402 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


Ephrata,  Penn.,  the  Sunday-school  in, 

112. 

Epiphany,  Church  of  the:  Stephen  H. 
Tyng's  work  in,  252  f. 

Episcopal  Divinity  School,  the,  in 
Philadelphia,  353-355- 

Esau's  Sunday-school  truancy,  5  ;  his 
birthright,  270  f. 

Estimate  of  Sunday-school  expenses, 
an,  211. 

"  Estimate  of  the  Manners  of  the 
Present  Time,"  Wesley's,  115  f. 

Euanggelizb,  translated  "preach," 
309  f. 

European  Magazine,  the,  Raikes  s 
words  in,  113. 

Evangelical  revival  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  the,  made  little  progress 
without  Sunday-schools,  115  f. 

Evangelistic  services  for  children, 
320  f. 

Evangelistic  work  of  the  pastor,  248. 

Evangelist's  mission  to  church-mem- 
bers, an,  286. 

Evangelizing  power  of  the  Sunday- 
school,  50  f.,  62  f ,  118  f ,  122-136, 
142,  199-205,  219  f.,  252  f 

"  Every  Man's  Life  a  Plan  of  God," 
Horace  Bushnell's  sermon  on,  351. 

Examinations,  Sunday-school,  208, 
258  f. 

Exercise:  a  necessary  part  of  train- 
ing, 279-286,  306;  is  for  the  good  of 
the  exercised,  300-302;  opinions  of 
the  value  of,  292,  297-300;  prepares 
for  work,  302  f. ;  use  of:  in  ancient 
times,  280-285;  by  the  Church  of 
Rome,  287;  by  the  Moravians  and 
the  Methodists,  106-109,  287;  by 
the  modern  church,  286-296. 

Exercises  in  the- Sunday-school,  215; 
gain  of,  196-199. 

Expenses  of  tlie  Sunday-school,  ought 
to  be  paid  by  the  church,  208-211. 

Experienced  teachers  not  always  most 
desirable,  216-223. 

"  Expulsive  Power  of  a  New  Affection, 
The,"  Thomas  Chalmers's  sermon 
on,  358. 

Ezra's  Bible-school,  7. 

Face-to-face  work,  gain  of,  256. 
Failure  of  Protestant  plans  for  early 
religious  teaching,  73-76. 


Fairfield,  Conn.,  family  religion  in, 
169. 

"  False  Shame,"  Andrew  P.  Peabody's 
sermon  on,  352. 

Family  religion :  appointed  by  God, 
146  f ,  151 ;  lesson  from  Jewish  tra- 
dition concerning,  182  f . ;  neces- 
sarily promoted  by  the  Sunday- 
school,  150  f.,  176-178;  no  "good 
old  days  "  of,  178-182;  progress  of, 
by  means  of  the  Sunday-school:  in 
England,  154-159  ;  in  Scotland,  159- 
162;  in  Ireland,  162  f;  in  Wales, 
163-165;  in  America,  165-176;  in 
all  places,  176,  183;  said  to  be  hin- 
dered by  the  Sunday-school,  145- 
150 ;  the  Sunday-school  was  insti- 
tuted to  complement,  150-153. 

Farmington,  Conn.,  improvement  in 
the  church  care  of  children  at,  174. 

Ferguson,  Katy :  her  Sunday-school 
work,  123. 

Ferris,  Isaac,  on  progress  in  Bible 
knowledge  through  the  Sunday- 
school,  126. 

First  Congregational  Church  of  Chi- 
cago, the  :  child-attendance  at,  372f. 

First-Day  School  Society,  the,  begin- 
nings of,  123. 

Fitness  for  the  teacher's  position,  gain 
of  insisting  on,  239-243. 

Five-minute  sermons  to  children,  329, 

357- 

Fletcher,  Alex. :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 336;  on  the  difficulty  of 
preaching  to  children,  339,343. 

Flint,  Abel,  on  family  religion  in  New 
England,  i6g,  180. 

Flood,  the,  an  epoch  in  the  history  of 
the  family,  151. 

"  Foolish  Exchange,  The,"  Jeremy 
Taylor's  sermon  on,  351. 

Foreign  missions,  the  movement  in 
favor  of:  brought  about  by  the  Sun^ 
day-school,  120. 

Foreign  Sunday  School  Association, 
the:  its  founding  and  work,  134- 
136,  222. 

Forms  of  installation  for  Sunday- 
school  officers  and  teachers,  239. 

Fox,  William,  an  early  Sunday-school 
worker,  114. 

Frampton,  Bp. :  his  Sunday-school, 
112. 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


403 


Free  Church  of  Scotland,  the:  its 
Genunil  Assembly's  sermon  to  chil- 
dren, 376. 

French  Government:  the  report  of  its 
commission,  132  f. 

French  Revolution,  the:  morality  at 
the  time  of,  97,  99,  101-103. 

Gain  to  the  Sunday-school  through 
adult  attendance,  196. 

Gallaudet,  Thos.  II. :  his  methods 
with  his  children,  314. 

Galleries,  church,  children  in  the,  174. 

Gait,  Wm. :  his  Sunday-school,  112. 

Gamaliel,  in  the  Talmud,  18;  Paul's 
teacher,  27,  38. 

Gamla,  Joshua  b.,  a  founder  of  Bible- 
schools,  9,  183. 

Geikie,  Cunningham,  on  Bible-schools 
in  Palestine,  10,  26. 

Gemara,  studied  in  Jewish  schools,  12. 

General  Assembly,  the:  on  religion  in 
Presbyterian  families,  170  f. ;  on 
Sunday-school  membership,  194. 

Gentleman's  Magazine,  the:  Raikes's 
letter  in,  109  f ,  113. 

Germany:  gymnasia  in,  284;  progress 
of  Sunday-school  work  in,  135. 

Gfrorer,  on  restoring  the  Talmud,  25. 

Gibson,  Edmund,  on  English  cate- 
chisms, 80. 

GUlespie,  George,  on  memorizing  the 
catechism,  83. 

Gillett,  E.  H.,  on  family  religion  in  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  170  f ,  180. 

Ginsburg,  Christian,  on  Jewish  Bible- 
schools,  10  f.,  18,  21. 

Girls'  Circle,  use  of  a,  294  f. 

Girls,  gentleman  teachers  for,  223. 

Giving,  Sunday-school,  287-290. 

Gloucester,  Raikes's  work  in,  xo9-iii. 

Godet,  Frederic,  on  Jesus  in  the 
temple,  30  f. 

"  God's  Thoughts  Fit  Bread  for  Chil- 
dren," Horace  Bushnell's  sermon 
on,  86,  197  f.,  219,  341  f. 

Golden  Age,  the,  Greek  ideas  con- 
cerning, 179. 

Goodell,  C.  L.,  as  a  model  pastor, 
262-266;  on  young  people's  meet- 
ings, 295. 

Good  old  days  of  family  religion:  as- 
sumed, 149  f.,  159,  169-171,  178-183  ; 
shown  to  be  a  myth,  154^172,  179- 
182. 


"Good,  the  Better,  the  Best,  The," 
T.  T.  Munger's  sermon  on,  352. 

Goodwin,  Daniel  R.:  his  sermon  to 
children   on   the  Incarnation,  353- 

355- 
Goodwin,  E.  P. :  his  success  in  securing 

children's  church  attendance,  372  f. 
Gospel,  the,  suited  to  a  child's  mind, 

217-219. 
Grain  of  Mustard  Seed,  Order  of  the, 

287. 
Great  Commission,  the,  was  a  com- 
mand to  start  Sunday-schools,  36  f., 

39.  63.  184,  193,  199,  209. 
"Great  Events  Hang  on  Little 

Things,"  John  Todd's  sermon  on, 

351- 

Great  truths  appreciated  by  children, 
218  f.,  341  f.,  348-355- 

Greek  education,  ancient,  place  of 
training  in,  284. 

Green,  Samuel  G.,  a  preacher  to  chil- 
dren, 335,  339,  343,  359. 

Greening,  Mrs. :  her  Sunday-school  in 
Philadelphia,  112. 

Greenwood,  F.  W.  P.:  his  sermons  to 
children,  335. 

Gregory  Thaumaturgus,  on  Origen's 
teaching  methods,  58. 

Gregory  the  Illuminator,  St.:  his 
Bible-schools  in  Armenia,  62. 

Green,  Ashbel,  on  religion  at  Princeton 
College,  167. 

Green,  J.  R.,  on  England  in  the  eigh- 
teenth century,  100,  116  f. 

Guilds,  church,  283,  291  1,  297  f. 

Gymnasium :  its  place  in  training, 
283  f. 

HALL,Bp. :  on  the  importance  of  cate- 
chising^go. 

Hall,  John.apreacherto  children,  337. 

Hammond,  E.  P.  :  his  evangelistic 
work  among  children,  320  f. 

Hanway,  Jonas:  his  early  Sunday- 
school  work,  114. 

Harrison,  Miss:  her  Sunday-school 
in  Bedale,  England,  112. 

Hart,  |ohn  S. :  on  the  true  order  in 
learning,  84. 

Hartley,  Fountain  J.:  on  children's 
services,  321  i. ;  on  the  English  Sun- 
day-school system,  305. 

Harvard  University,  inquiry  concern- 
ing family  religion  at,  172. 


404 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


Hatch,  Edwin:  on  early  church  or- 
ganization, 48. 

Hatherly,  Lord:  on  unpaid  Sunday- 
school  worlv,  133  f. 

Haven,  Henry  P. :  his  Christmas  giving 
methods,  290;  his"  Religious  Class," 
294. 

Hawaiian  child-training,  289. 

Heathen  converts,  trained  by  the  in- 
terlocutory method,  56,  59,  62. 

Hebrews,  the:  their  longing  for  the 
"good  old  days,"  178. 

Heidelberg  Catechism,  on  the  divine 
authority  of  schools,  74. 

Henshaw,  Bp.,  on  the  Sunday-school 
and  the  family,  148,  179. 

Herbert,  George,  on  the  gain  of  cate- 
chising, 91. 

Herodotus,  on  Egyptian  customs,  55. 

Heys,  James,  his  Sunday-school  near 
Bolton,  England,  112. 

Hezekiah,  King :  his  Sunday-school 
zeal,  6,  152. 

High  Priest,  the  Jewish :  his  need  of 
practice,  282  f. 

High  standard  easiest  to  maintain, 
239-241,  261. 

High  Wycombe,  England,  Sunday- 
school  at,  112. 

Hill,  John  C:  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 329,  357. 

Hocker,  Ludwig:  his  Sunday-school, 
in  Ephrata,  Penn.,  112. 

Home  readings,  on  the  Sunday-school 
lesson,  259. 

Home  religious  teaching,  a  conver- 
sation on,  177. 

Homily,  originally  interlocutory,  52- 

55.  312.  369- 

How,  Bp.  W.  W. :  his  preaching  to 
children,  336,  368  f. ;  on 'children's 
services,  323  f. 

"  How  to  Build  a  Church,"  C.  L. 
Goodell  on,  264  f. 

How  to  teach,  a  teacher  must  know, 
223. 

Humphrey,  Heman :  on  family  re- 
ligion in  Fairfield,  169,  179;  on  the 
Sunday-school  and  the  family,  148. 

Hunna,  Rabba  Bar:  his  Sunday- 
school  zeal,  152. 

Hussites,  the,  Bible-school   work  of, 

65.  94- 
Hymn  for  the  month,  a,  259. 


Hymn-singing,  gain  of,  in  dividing  the 
service,  370  f. 

Ignorance  :  need  of  ascertaining:  in 
scholars,  228  f . ;  in  teachers,  234; 
of  Sunday-school  teachers,  whose 
fault,  225  f. ;  of  the  uncatechised, 
225  f ,  228  f. 

Illustration  in  children's  sermons,  need 
of,  362  f. ,  365  f. 

Illustrations:  adults  in  Sunday-school, 
195  f;  Alpine  shepherd,  the,  190; 
bellows,  the,  93;  better  church-mem- 
bers, a  pastor  who  wanted,  286 ; 
Body  of  Christ,  the,  306;  bond- 
woman, the  child  of  the,  211;  boy's 
appreciation  of  God's  omnipresence, 
a,  349  f. ;  ignorance  in  uncatechised 
persons,  228  f . ;  missionaries,  fam- 
ilies of,  perverted,  103;  new  scholars, 
methods  of  gaining,  199-203  ;  Nor- 
wich Town,  a  young  girl's  Sunday- 
school  work  in,  127-129;  question- 
ing methods,  270  f.,  368  f . ;  sermon 
to  children  on  a  deep  subject,  a, 
353-355 ;  successful  Sunday-school 
pastors,  251-255,  258-271,  274  f; 
university,  the,  248  f. ;  Yung  Wing's 
work,  364  f. 

Imperfect  scholars,  dealing  with,  260  f. 

Impressibility  of  children,  27,  31^^ 
315-320,  326.  __ 

"  Imps  of  Satan,"  early  Sunday-school 
workers  designated  as,  128. 

Inattention,  danger  of  training  chil- 
dren in,  313-315. 

Incarnation,  the :  D.  R.  Goodwin's 
sermon  on,  354  f. ;  the  idea  of,  222. 

Independency  of  the  Sunday-school, 
190  f.,  208. 

Injunctions  of  the  Church  of  England 
on  catechising,  78. 

Installation  of  teachers,  238  f.,  243. 

Instruction :  one  factor  in  the  training 
process,  279  f.,  283. 

Inter-collegiate  mission,  young  men 
best  fitted  for  an,  222. 

Interest  in  children,  the  Church's,  375  f. 

Interlocutory  teaching.  See  Cate- 
chetical teaching ;  Teaching. 

International  lessons,  the :  their  in- 
fluence on  Bible -study,  138-142; 
their  origin  and  adoption,  136-138. 

Interrupting  the  sermon  to  speak  to 
the  children,  330-333. 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


405 


Introduction  of  the  modern  Sunday- 
school  into  America,  122. 

Ireland,  f.imily  religion  in,  162  f. 

Irreligion  in  England  in  the  eighteenth 
century,  98-100. 

Jacob  and  Esau  compared,  5,  270  f. 

Jobb,  Bp.,  on  the  importance  of  cate- 
chising, 89. 
Jehoshaphat :  his  teaching  reforms,  7. 

Jerusalem,  synagogue -schools  in, 
17  f.,  28. 

Jesuits,  the,  training  work  of,  69  f. 

Jesus:  a  scholar  in  the  liible-school, 
28-31;  his  exaltation  of  childhood, 
374-377;  his  Great  Commission,! 
36  f.,  39,  63,  184,  193,  199,  209;  his  ! 
interruption  for  the  sake  of  the  chil-  1 
dren,  332  ;  his  teaching  methods,  32-  I 
36  ;  his  training  of  the  apostles,  283  ;  1 
in  the  Temple,  29-31 ;  on  unselfish-  \ 
ness,  352  ;  Talmudic  mention  of,  27.  I 

Jethro,  a  scholar  in  Moses'  Bible- 
school,  5.  I 

Jewish  Bible-school,  the:  established:  i 
by  Simon  b.  Shetach,  8  ;  by  Joshua  j 
b.  Gamla,  9, 183  ;  existence  of,  proof 
of,  9-1 1  ;  importance  of,  recognized, 
26-28,  152  f ;  interlocutory  teach- 
ing in,  20-26;  Jesus:  a  scholar  in, 
28-31,  152;  a  teacher  in,  32-36; 
hkened  to  the  modern  Sunday- 
school,  10;  location  of,  13  f  ;  men- 
tioned :  in  tradition,  5  f . ;  in  the  Old 
Testament,  6  f.,  151  f.  ;  in  Josephus 
and  Philo,  7  f. ;  in  the  Talmud,  5  f., 
8-28,  36,  152  f.,  183;  methods  of: 
described,  11-26,  191  f ,  250  ;  used  by 
Jesus,  32-36 ;  appointed  in  the  Great 
Commission,  36  f.,  39,  63  ;  followed, 
37-41,  47  f.,  61-63;  mode  of  con- 
ducting, 18-20;  recapitulations  con- 
cerning, 14  f,  43  f  ;  relation  of,  to 
the  synagogue,  15^,250;  sessions 
of,  15-17 ;  statistics  of,  17  f  ;  sub- 
jects of  instruction  in,  11-13. 

Jewish  Church,  the:  its  economy  in- 
cluded Sunday-schools,  4-28,  43; 
its  opportunities,  48. 

Jews,  the,  Sunday-schools  among,  131. 

John  the  Baptist:  as  a  preacher,  33, 
67,  113- 

Jones,  Griffith  :  his  Bible-schools,  164. 


Jones,  Morgan:  his  Sunday-school 
in  Newton,  Long  Island,  112. 

Josephus:  his  description  of  the  Bible- 
school,  7-9;  his  precocity,  31. 

Joshua,  a  pupil  in  Moses'  Bible- 
school,  5. 

Josiah,  S.  H.  Tyng's  sermon  on,  356  f. 

Judgment,  the,  recitative  exercise 
upon, 259. 

Julian  the  Apostate:  his  edict  against 
Christian  teachers,  49. 

Justin  Martyr:  his  description  of 
early  Christian  worship,  54. 

Juvenile  missionary  societies,  287-290. 

Katanggello,  translated  "preach- 
ing," 310. 

Katecheo  :  its  meaning,  40  f. 

Kennedy,  Dr. :  his  Sunday-school  in 
Down,  Ireland,  112. 

Kennicott,  Mrs.,  Hannah  More's  cor- 
respondence with,  155. 

Kenosis,  doctrines  of  the,  explained  to 
children,  354. 

Kent,  James,  on  religion  among  pro- 
fessional men,  167. 

Kentucky,  decline  of  family  religion 
in,  171. 

Kerusso  :  translated  "preaching,"  309. 

King,  Mr.  and  Mrs.,  the  helpers  of 
Robert  Raikes,  109-111. 

King,  William  :  his  Sunday-school  in 
Dursley,  England,  112. 

Kirk,  E.  N.,  on  progress  in  the  re- 
ligious care  of  children,  125. 

Kitchen  Gardens,  293. 

Kitto,  J.  F.,  on  the  influence  of  Sun- 
day-schools, 117. 

Kittredge,  Abbott  E.,  on  a  pastor's 
Sunday-school  work,  266. 

Knowledge  requisite  to  teaching, 
223  f ,  227. 

Knox,  John:  an  individual  reformer, 
113;  recognized  the  importance  of 
church-schools,  68.  106. 

Kraussold,  L.,  on  early  catechetical 
instruction,  61. 

Kurtz,  J.  H.,  on  "  the  years  of  spiritual 
famine  "  in  Europe,  97  f. 

Lainez,  the  Jesuit,  69. 

Language,  simple,  necessary  in  a  ser- 
mon to  children,  357-361. 

Latimer,  Hugh:  his  "Sermon  on  the 
Plow,"  351. 


4o6 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


Laveleye,  6mile  de :  his  tribute  to  the 
American  Sunday-school,  133. 

Law,  Bp.,  on  true  catechising,  91. 

Laymen  as  teachers,  61 ;  as  superin- 
tendents, 250  f.,  255. 

Lea,  Henry  C:  his  "History  of  the 
Inquisition,"  64. 

Lecky,  W.  E.  H. :  on  England  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  100,  105;  on 
family  religion  in  Scotland,  160;  on 
the  establishment  of  Sunday-schools, 
117;  on  the  Wesleyan  movement, 
108. 

Lecturing  method,  the,  not  in  place : 
in  a  normal  class,  227-229 ;  in  a 
teachers'-meeting,  233  f. 

Leghorn,  the  Via  della  Scuola  in,  16. 

Lesson  -  helps  :  improved  under  the 
International  lesson  system,  138  f; 
in  Jewish  Bible-schools,  12  f.;  pre- 
pared :  by  the  Reformers,  68  ;  by  a 
modern  pastor,  259 ;  to  be  paid  for 
by  the  church,  210  f. ;  use  of,  in  the 
modern  Sunday-school,  126,  136- 
140,  259. 

Lesson  review,  the  pastor's,  269-272. 

Letters  of  Robert  Raikes,  109-113. 

Lightfoot,  Bp.,  on  the  "  Second  Epistle 
of  Clement,'    55. 

Lightfoot,  John,  on  Jewish  Bible- 
schools,  18,  21. 

Lindsey,  Theophilus  :  his  Sunday- 
school  in  Catterick,  England,  112. 

Literature  created  by  the  International 
lesson  system,  138-140. 

Liturgy,  a  Sunday-school,  259  f. 

"Living  to  God  in  Small  Things," 
Horace  Bushnell's  sermon  on,  351. 

Locke,  John,  on  rote-learning,  83  f. 

Lollards,  the :  their  Bible-school  work, 

65- 

London  Missionary  Society,  the :  its 
organization  induced  by  the  Sun- 
day-school, 120. 

London  Sunday  School  Union,  the: 
differs  from  the  American  Sunday 
School  Union,  305  ;  its  co-operation 
with  American  workers,  135. 

Longfellow :  a  college  contemporary 
of  D.  R.  Goodwin,  354;  on  the 
Children's  Crusade,  318. 

Lord's  Prayer,  the:  Maurice's  expo- 
sition of,  360 1. ;  part  of  a  school 
liturgy,  259  f. 


Loyola,  Ignatius,  founder  of  the  Jesu- 
its, 69  f.,  72,  106,  113. 

Luther,  Martin:  an  individual  re- 
former, 113  ;  opposed  the  rote-learn- 
ing of  catechisms,  77  f. ;  saw  the 
importance  of  teaching,  67  f ,  106, 
258. 

Lyons,  the  cathedral  school  at,  56. 

Macuuff,  J.  R. :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 337. 

Macleod,  Alex. :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 337  ;  on  preaching  to  children, 
328  f 

Mahaffy,  J.  P.,  on  early  Greek  educa- 
tion, 284. 

Mahon,  Lord:  on  England  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  100,  105;  on 
family  religioain  England,  154;  on 
improvement  by  means  of  the  Sun- 
day-school, 116,  156. 

Maimonides,  on  Jewish  Bible-school 
methods,  14  f ,  19,  21,  26. 

Malachi,  on  God's  purposes  for  the 
family,  146. 

Malthus,  on  the  Sunday-school,  118. 

Management  of  the  Sunday-school : 
at  first  in  its  own  hands,  190  f.,  206; 
how  exercised,  205  f  ;  now  generally 
by  the  local  church,  190  f ,  206;  re- 
sults of  wise,  211  i.\  should  be  by 
the  local  church,  190,  205-211;  what 
it  includes,  206-211. 

"  Man  who  was  too  Busy  to  do  his 
Duty,' The,"  Samuel  Cox's  sermon 
on,  352. 

Mansfield,  England,  Sunday-school  at, 
112. 

Marking,  Sunday-school,  260  f. 

Martyrdom    of    the    child  crusaders, 

319- 
Maskell,  W.,    on  the    early    English 

Primer,  65. 
Mather,  Cotton:  on  religion  in  New 

England,  181  ;  on  the  gain  of  cate- 
chising, 88. 
Mather,  Increase,  on  religion  in  New 

England,  181  f. 
Maurice,  Frederick  :    his  addresses  to 

children,  336,  360  f. 
May,  Robert :  his  Sunday-school  work 

in  Philadelphia,  123. 
Mayer,  Johann  :  his  writings  on  cate- 

ohetics,  58. 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


407 


McKee,  J.  T>.,  on  preaching  to  chil- 
dren, 326  f.,  339,  359,  370. 

MciCwcn,  Abel,  on  family  religion  in 
New  London,  Conn.,  168,  180. 

Meade,  Bp.,  on  religion  in  Virginia, 
167,  171. 

Melchizedek,  Abraham's  teacher,  5. 

Melville,  Andrew:  asermon  ofhis,35i. 

Membership,  Sunday-school :  as  it  is  : 
in  America,  188-190;  in  England, 
156-159,  187  f. ;  as  it  should  be, 
191-205. 

Memorizing  catechisms  un intelli- 
gently not  desirable,  75-88. 

Memorizing  the  Scriptures:  among 
the  Waldenses,  66;  in  Jewish  Bible- 
schools,  12,  28  f.,  43  ;  in  the  modern 
Sunday-school,  119,  136,  259;  in  the 
schools  of  the  Early  Church,  62  f. 

Merrill,  J.  G.:  his  "  Five-minute  Ser- 
mons," 329. 

Merrill,  Selah,  on  Sunday-schools  in 
Palestine,  10. 

Mesopotamia,  Sunday-schools  in,  62. 

Alcthode  de  Saint- Sulpice,  a  treatise  on 
the  religious  instruction  of  children, 

73- 

Methodist  Church,  the :  beginnings 
of,  106-108,  115,  118  f . ;  its  class- 
meetings,  93,  107-109,  287,  293; 
its  control  of  the  Sunday-school,  191 , 
205 ;  its  work  among  children,  108  f. 

Methodist  clergyman,  a,  on  a  pastor's 
Sunday-school  work,  267-269. 

Method  of  a  pastor's  lesson-review, 
270  f. 

Methuselah,  traditions  of,  as  a  Sun- 
day-school teacher,  5. 

Milnor,  James,  a  predecessor  of 
Stephen  H.  Tyng,  253. 

Ministering  Children's  Leagues,  293. 

Minutes  ofthe  Westminster  Assembly, 
81  f. 

Missionary  societies,  juvenile,  287-290. 

Mission  Sunday-schools,  188,  203-205, 
240  f.,  253,  289. 

Mishna,  the:  as  a  theme  of  study,  12; 
methods  of  its  teaching,  25. 

Middle  Ages:  decline  of  spirituality 
in,  64;  exceptions,  64  f. 

Model  pastor,  C.  L.  Goodell  as  a, 
262-266. 

Monosyllables  in  children's  sermons, 
359- 


Moody,  Dwight  L.,  a  leader  in  Bible- 
study,  141. 

Moravians:  their  method  of  training, 
287;  their  work  for  children,  94, 
106-108,  197,  320. 

More,  Hannah :  her  Sunday-school 
work,  154  f. 

More,  Henry :  his  estimate  of  cate- 
chising, 90. 

Mormons,    Sunday-schools    among, 

131- 

Morrison,  Mr.:  his  Sunday-school  in 
Norham,  Scotland,  112. 

Moses:  his  Bible-school,  5,  25  f. 

Munger,  T.  T. :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 337,  352. 

Names  given  to  the  Jewish  Bible- 
school,  II. 

Naturalness  of  delivery,  essential  in 
preaching  to  children,  369  f. 

Neander,  A.,  on  teaching-methods  at 
Alexandria,  58. 

Neighborhood  Sunday-schools,  need 
for,  204  f. 

New  Britain,  Conn.,  C.  L.  Goodell's 
work  in,  262  f. 

New  England:  church  teaching  in,  87- 
89  ;  inquiries  concerning  family  re- 
ligion in,  175,  179-182;  revival 
among  children  in,  320. 

New  England  Tract  Society,  the,  ser- 
mons to  children  published  by,  335. 

New  Haven,  Conn.,  a  training-class 
in,  300. 

New  London,  Conn.:  family  religion 
in, 168;   H.  P.  Haven's  work  in,  294. 

New  scholars,  how  to  gain,  199-205. 

Newton,  Long  Island,  Sunday-school 
in,  112. 

Newton,  John,  an  early  supporter  of 
the  Sunday-school,  114. 

Newton,  Richard:  his  preaching  to 
children,  336,  339,  368 ;  on  Sunday- 
school  giving,  288. 

New  York:  Sunday-schools  in,  123; 
John  Summerfield  in,  369;  Stephen 
H.  Tyng's  work  in,  253. 

New  York,  Western,  state  of  religion 
in,  171. 

Nicholas  of  Cologfne,  a  preacher  of 
the  Children's  Crusade,  317. 

Norham,  Scotland,  Sunday-school  in, 
112. 


4o8 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


Normal  class  for  intending  teachers, 
a:  its  importance  and  methods, 
226-230. 

Northfield,  Mass.,  D.  L.  Moody's 
Summer  School  at,  141. 

Norton,  Thomas,  on  the  bishop's  use 
of  catechising,  79. 

Norwich,  Conn.:  an  early  Sunday- 
school  at,  112;  Harriet  Lathrop's 
Sunday-school  work  in,  127-129; 
method  of  dividing  the  service  in, 
370  f  ;  prominent  persons  in  a  Sun- 
day-school at,  195. 

Nott,  Samuel,  Jr. :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 334. 

Nowell's  Catechism,  79-81. 

Objections  to  the  Sunday-school:  as 
adverse  to  the  family,  145-150;  as 
taught  chiefly  by  young  persons, 
220-222. 

Old  Testament  references  to  the  Bible- 
school,  6  f. 

Oldham,  England,  voluntary  teaching 
at,  119. 

Olivet  Sunday-school  methods,  240  f 

Omnipresence  of  God,  the,  compre- 
hended by  a  child,  349  f 

Opening  and  closing  exercises :  in  a 
modern  Sunday-school,  259  f ;  in 
Jewish  Bible-schools,  20. 

Opposition  to  the  Sunday-school  by 
church  dignitaries,  114,  128. 

Oriental  school-methods,  18,  23. 

Origen:  a  lay  teacher,  250;  his  reply 
to  Celsus,  50;  his  teaching-methods, 

57-59- 

Origin  of  the  Sunday-school.  See 
Beginnings,  Sunday-school. 

Outline  of  a  sermon  to  children  :  should 
be  clearly  stated,  356  f ,  366  ;  should 
be  repeated  by  the  children,  367  f 

Outside  children  in  the  Sunday- 
school,  199-205,  258. 

Outside  organizations,  church  asso- 
ciations should  not  be  responsible 
to,  304-306. 

Owen,  John,  on  the  gain  of  catechis- 
ing, 91. 

Paid  Sunday-school  teachers,  110,119, 
123,  133. 

Palmer,  Herbert :  his  plan  for  a  cate- 
chism, 81. 


Paniel,  K.  F.  W.,  on  conversational 

preaching,  53-55. 

Pan-Presbyterian  Council,  the  :  Alex. 
Macleod's  remarks  before,  328  f.; 
in  favor  of  sermons  to  children,  376. 

Parents:  duty  of,  to  train  their  chil- 
dren (see  Family  religion);  easiest 
reached  through  the  children,  189  f., 
199-202,  205. 

Pastoral  work,  a  pastor's,  247  f. 

Pastor,  the:  e.xamples  of  his  work  in 
the  Sunday-school,  252-271,  274  f.; 
his  duty  to  his  Sunday-school,  249  f , 
257,  272  f,  275  f;  his  responsi- 
bility for  the  ignorance  of  his  hear- 
ers, 225  f ,  228  f  ;  likened  to  a  uni- 
versity president,  248  f ;  meaning 
of  the  term,  247  f ;  should  he  be 
the  superintendent,  249-255,  258- 
261,  263,  272  f. 

Paterson,  New  Jersey,  Sunday-school 
beginnings  at,  123. 

Paucity  of  hints  on  preaching  to  chil- 
dren, 347. 

Paul:  a  pupil  of  Gamaliel,  27,  38;  his 
preaching  to  children,  332;  his 
teaching  methods,  38-40,  42. 

Pawtucket,  Rhode  Island,  Sunday- 
school  beginnings  at,  123. 

Pa.xson,  Stephen  :  his  pioneer  Sunday- 
school  work,  130  f. 

Peabody,  A.  P. :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 337,  352. 

Penny  postage  in  Great  Britain,  in- 
fluence of  the  Sunday-school  in 
securing,  119  f. 

Personal  testimony :  to  successful  Sun- 
day-school work  by  the  pastor,  258- 
263,  270  f ,  274  i. ;  to  the  frequency 
of  the  pastor's  objection  to  the 
ignorance  of  his  Sunday-school 
teachers,  225 ;  to  the  influence  of 
the  "  Cold  Water  Army,"  291;  to 
the  power  of  the  Sunday-school  in 
promoting  family  religion,  173-175; 
to  the  presence  of  adults  in  the  Sun- 
day-school, 195  f  ;  to  the  value  of 
a  clear  sermon-outline,  356  f. 

Pestalozzi,  opposed  to  rote-learning, 
84. 

Peter,  the  apostle :  his  teaching  and 
preaching,  38,  54,  67. 

Peter  of  Burgundy,  a  preacher  of  the 
Children's  Crusade,  317. 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


409 


Peter  the  Hermit :  a  preacher  of  the 
Crusades,  317. 

Philadelphia:  preaching  to  children 
'"1  335  f •  I  Sunday-school  work  in, 
112,  123, 130,  252  f. ;  the  Lecturer's 
Bible-class  in,  196. 

Philip  the  apostle,  bringing  Nathanael 
to  Christ,  220. 

Phillips,  Samuel :  his  sermon  to  chil- 
dren, 333  f. 

Philo  Judaeus:  his  description  of  the 
Bible-school,  8  ;  his  influence  on 
the  school  at  Alexandria,  56  f. 

Pioneer  Sunday-school  work,  130  f., 
188  f. 

Pirqe  Aboth,  on  methods  in  learning, 
20. 

Pittsburgh,  Penn.,  Sunday-school  be- 
ginnings in,  123. 

Plain  \\'ords  to  Children,  Bp.  How's, 
368  f 

Plan  of  a  children's  sermon  should  be 
clearly  stated,  356  f.,  366. 

Plans  for  Bible-study  discussed  by  the 
International  Convention,  137  f 

Plato,  on  the  need  of  exercise,  281  f. 

Plumcr,  Wm.  S.:  his  preaching  to 
children,  337,  352,359  f. 

Plymouth,  Mass.,  Sunday-school  at, 
112. 

"  Polity  of  Nations,"  Chalmers's,  161  f. 

Pomfret,  Conn. :  150th  anniversary  of 
the  church  in,  129  f. 

Pope,  altered  quotation  from,  179. 

Porter,  E.  Payson,  Sunday-school 
statistics  of,  133. 

Porter,  Noah,  on  the  work  of  the 
Jesuits,  70. 

Porteus,  Bp.,  an  early  advocate  of  the 
Sunday-school,  114. 

Portsmouth,  New  Hampshire,  Sunday- 
school  beginnings  at,  123. 

"  Power,  The,  of  Wickedness  and  of 
Righteousness  to  Reproduce  Them- 
selves," Andrew  Melville's  sermon 
on,  351. 

Poynet,  Bp. :  his  catechism,  79  f 

Practicability  of  Sunday-school  pas- 
toral work,  261  f.,  268-272. 

Practice  class  for  teachers,  a,  230. 

Pray's  History  of  Sunday-schools,  109, 
114. 

Prayer-book  of  Edward  VI.,  the  cate- 
chism of  the,  78-80. 


Prayer,  children's  part  in,  173  f. 

Prayer-meeting,  the  weekly,  the  pas- 
tor's part  in,  249  f.,  259. 

Prayer-meetings,  young  people's, 293  f., 
301  f. 

Prayer,  repetition  of,  by  sentences,  260. 

Prayers,  family:  in  America,  168  f., 
171  f. ,  175  f.,  181;  in  England,  154- 
156;  in  Scotland,  160  f;  the  Har- 
vard inquiry  concerning,  172. 

Preaching:  attendance  of  children 
upon,  312-315,  372  f. ;  by  the  Sun- 
day-school teacher,  31 1  f. ;  different 
from  teaching,  32  f.,  36,  38,  54,  67; 
not  a  substitute  for  teaching,  90-92, 
I94f.,  224-230;  originally  interlocu- 
tory, 53-55,  312,  369;  overshad- 
owed teaching,  75  f,  87-92  ;  threefold 
meaning  of  the  term,  309-311. 

Preaching  to  children:  by  Wesley, 
106-108,  320,  334;  by  Zinzendorf, 
106;  difficulties  of,  320,  330,  334, 
337-341, 372  f. ;  examples  of:  in  the 
Crusades,  317-319;  in  revival  work, 
319  f. ;  by  Daniel  R.  Goodwin,  353- 
355;  by  Stephen  H.  Tyng,  356  f.; 
by  Frederick  Maurice,  360  f. ;  by  Bp. 
How,  368  f ;  importance  of  3iof., 
315-317.  320.  326,  328  f ,  341  f.,  347, 
376;  need:  of  strong  thoughts  in, 
348-355;  ofa  clearly  stated  text  and 
outline  in,  355-357,  366;  of  simple 
language  in,  357-361 ;  of  fit  illustra- 
tion and  application  in,  362-366;  of 
careful  securing  and  holding  atten- 
tion in.  366-372;  neglect  of,  312- 
317,376;  opportunities  of :  by  sepa- 
rate services,  321-327 ;  as  part  of 
morning  service,  327-330;  by  di- 
gression, 330-333;  by  occasional 
sermons,  333  f. 

Preparation  for  service,  the  end  of 
training,  302  f. 

Presbyterian  Church,  the:  control  of 
the  Sunday-school  by,  191,  205  ;  fam- 
ily religion  in,  170  f  ;  recognition  of 
children  by,  376;  use  of  the  Young 
People's  Prayer  Meeting  by,  293. 

Pressense,  E.  de:  on  teaching  and  ritu- 
alism, 68;  on  the  religious  decline 
of  the  eighteenth  century,  98. 

Primary  class :  graduates  from  Stephen 
H.  Tyng's,  255;  young  teachers 
best  for,  217,  223. 


4IO 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


Prince,  Thomas,  on  religion  in  New 
England,  i8o  f. 

Princeton  College,  religion  at,  167, 
172. 

Priscilla  and  Aquila,  as  inexperienced 
teachers,  220. 

Prize  essay  on  the  Sunday-school,  by 
Louisa  Davids,  322  f. 

Probation  of  candidates  for  Sunday- 
school  membership,  240  f.,  259. 

Prodigal  Son,  the  :  a  Western  Sunday- 
school  compared  to,  211 ;  recitative 
exercise  upon,  259. 

Prominent   men   in   Sunday-school, 

195- 

Protestant  churches  in  America,  sta- 
tistics of,  131  f. 

Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  the  :  its 
control  of  the  Sunday-school,  191, 
205;  its  use  of  training  agencies, 
291-293. 

Protestant  failures  through  lack  of 
child-training,  68,  70,  72-75. 

Protestant  Sunday-schools  of  America, 
statistics  of,  133. 

Proudfit,  on  the  decline  of  catecheti- 
cal instruction,  64. 

Proverbs,  on  training,  281  f. 

QOHELETH,the  Preacher,  on  the  good 

old  days,  179. 
Qualifications   of  the   Sunday-school 

teacher,  216-223,  239-243. 
Question   and   answer :    necessary  to 

catechetical  teaching,  20  f,  24,29, 

37.  39  f-.  52,  61,  82  f ,  88,  91. 
Questioning,  gain  of,  in  preaching  to 

children,  366-369. 
Questions  asked  by  Jesus,  33-36. 

Ragged  schools  in  England,  188. 
Raikcs  Centenary,  the,  109,  114,  117, 

119.  133.  135- 
Raikes,    Robert,    the   founder  of  the 

modern    Sunday-school,    109- 115, 

117,  187,  199. 
Raising  the  standard  in  Sunday-school 

management,  gain  of  239-242. 
Ramsay,  Dean,   on  family  prayer  in 

Scotland,  160  f 
Rawley,  William  :  his  account  of  Lord 

Bacon's  precocity,  31. 
Recapitulations  :  of  facts  about  early 

Christian    schools,   61 ;    of  Jewish 


school  law,  14  f ;  of  the  church's 
duty  in  the  selection  and  training  of 
teachers,  243  f. ;  of  the  Church's 
mission  to  the  young,  373-377  ;  of 
the  Jewish  origin  and  Christian 
adoption  of  the  Sunday-school,  43  f  ; 
of  the  modern  Sunday-school  move- 
ment, 142;  of  the  pastor's  duty  to 
his  Sunday-school,  275  i. 

Recitation  of  Scripture  passages,  259  f 

Recognition  of  scholars'  work,  200, 
261. 

Reed,  Sir  Charles:  on  separate  ser- 
vices for  children,  322  ;  on  Sunday- 
school  beginnings,  114,  119. 

Reformation,  the:  brought  about  by 
preaching,  67 ;  checked  by  Jesuit 
schools,  69  f. 

Reformers,  the,  saw  the  need  of  Bible- 
schools,  67  f ,  76. 

Regular  services  for  children,  324-327. 

Reinerius's  account  of  the  Waldenses, 
66. 

Religious  class,  H.  P.  Haven's,  294. 

Religious  decline  of  the  Church  ;  after 
the  Reformation,  68,  97-103,  120, 
142  ;  before  the  Dark  Ages,  63-65  ; 
in  New  England,  89,  180-182;  was 
due  to  neglect  of  interlocutory  teach- 
ing, 63-68,  73-75.  87-89,  94, 103-105, 
120  f ,  142. 

Religious  Tract  Society,  the :  owed  its 
origin  to  the  Sunday-school,  120. 

Repetition  of  the  text  and  outline  by 
the  children,  gain  of  366  f 

Report  of  the  Irish  Education  In- 
quiry, on  the  influence  of  Sunday- 
schools  in  Ireland,  162  f. 

Reports  from  the  Sunday-school  to  the 
church,  208. 

Representative  character  of  the  Sun- 
day-school teacher,  243. 

Responsibility  :  of  the  church  :  for  the 
management  of  its  Sunday-school, 
205-21 1 ;  for  the  training  of  its  teach- 
ers, 223-232 ;  of  the  pastor,  for  the 
religious  work  of  his  church,  248- 
250. 

Responsiveness  of  a   child-audience, 

371  f- 
Restoring  the  Talmud,  possibility  of, 

25- 

Reuss,  Eduard,  on  schools  in  the  days 
of  Christ,  10. 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


411 


Reviewing  in  Jewish  schools,  17. 

Revisers,  the :  their  translation  of  kat- 
anggello,  310. 

Revivals  of  religion:  among  children, 
106-109,  127,  319  f . ;  are  brought 
about  by  preaching,  67 ;  are  made 
permanent  only  by  teaching,  67  f., 
70,  73,  93,  104-109;  in  America  un- 
der Edwards  and  Whitcfield,  97, 
loi,  106,  180,  320;  in  England  un- 
der Wesley  and  Whitcfield,  93,  97, 
106,  115  f.,  168,  180;  in  Germany 
under  Zinzendorf,  106  f.,  319  f . ;  the 
Sunday-school's  influence  upon, 
115  f.,  127. 

Reynolds,  Sir  Joshua,  Hannah  More's 
words  concerning,  154. 

Riddle,  M.  B.,  on  the  interlocutory 
method  in  Chrysostom's  homilies, 

55- 
Ritualism,   as    opposed   to    teaching, 

63  f. 
"  Road  for  God,  A,"   Bp.  How's  ser- 
mon on,  368  f. 
Roll-call,   in  the  Sunday-school,  269, 

374- 
Rome,  Church  of:  its  use :  of  teaching, 

69-73;  of  the  Sunday-school,   131; 

of  practice  agencies,  287. 
Ross,   A.    Hastings:   his   sermons   to 

children,  337,  373  f. 
Roxbury,  Mass.,  early  Sunday-school 

in,  112. 
Royal    Education    Commission,    the, 

on  Sunday-schools  in  Wales,  165. 
Rutherford,   Samuel,  on   catechising, 

82. 
Ryle,  Bp. :    his  sermons  to  children, 

336 ;  on  England  in  the  eighteenth 

century,  99. 

Samaritan'  woman,  the  :  an  inex- 
perienced worker,  220. 

Samuel,  the  child.  Sir  J.  Reynolds's 
picture  of,  154. 

Samuel,  the  prophet:  his  Bible- 
schools,  5. 

Sandwich  Islands,  the,  Titus  Coan's 
experience  in,  289. 

Saturday  evening  prayers  a  Sabbath 
service,  168. 

Saving  the  children,  C.  L.  Goodell  on, 
264  f. 

Schaff,  P4'iilip  :  on  catechising,  41 ;  on  | 


early  catechisms,  64  f. ;  on  the 
Church's  adoption  of  synagogue- 
methods,  37;  on  the  triumphs  of 
the  Early  Church,  50  f. 

Schauffler,  A.  F. :  his  Sunday-school 
methods,  240  f. 

Schools  in  Palestine,  7-18,  28-30. 

Schiirer,Emil,  on  Jewish  Bible-schools, 
9-12. 

Schwenkfelders,  the  :  their  Sunday- 
school  in  Pennsylvania,  I12. 

Scotch  Book  of  Discipline,  the :  recog- 
nized the  place  of  catechising,  74. 

Scotland  :  family  religion  in,  159-162; 
opposition  to  the  Sunday-school  in, 
114,  222. 

Scotland,  Church  of:  its  provision  for 
catechising,  74,  159. 

Scott,  Thomas,  an  early  supporter  of 
the  Sunday-school,  114. 

Scrap-books,  use  of,  by  the  children's 
preacher,  362  f. 

Sears,  Barnas,  on  training  children  to 
listless  hearing,  314. 

Selection  of  teachers:  the  church's 
duty  in,  239-243;  the  superintend- 
ent's part  in,  206  f. 

Separate  services  for  children,  321-324. 

Sermonettes  for  children,  327-330. 

"Sermon  of  the  Plow,''  Hugh 
Latimer's,  351. 

Sermons  to  children.  See  Preaching 
to  children. 

Service  of  song,  the :  the  pastor's  re- 
sponsibility for,  250. 

Setting  others  at  work,  gain  of,  251, 
262  f. 

Shem  and  Eber's  "  house  of  instruc- 
tion," 5. 

Shetach,  Simon  b.,  the  establisher  of 
Bible-schools,  8,  67. 

"Short  Sermons  to  Little  Children," 
W.  S.  Plumer's  volume  of,  359  f. 

Simplicity  of  language  :  necessary  in 
a  children's  sermon,  338,  357-361 ; 
not  incompatible  wit  h  great 
thoughts,  358,  360  f. 

Simpson,  David:  his  Sunday-school 
in  Mansfield,  England,  112. 

Singing,  educational  value  of,  197  f. 

Slater,  Samuel:  his  Sunday-school  in 
Pawtucket,  Rhode  Island,  123. 

Smith,  Adam:  his  opinion  of  Sunday- 
schools,  117  f.,  121. 


412 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


Smith,  John  Cotton,  on  the  feasibility 
of  preaching  to  children,  343. 

Smith,  Payne,  on  early  ideas  of  train- 
ing. 7- 

Smyth,  Thomas,  on  the  membership 
of  the  Sunday-school,  193  f. 

Societies  that  owe  their  origin  to  the 
Sunday-school,  120. 

South,  Robert,  on  the  importance  of 
catechising,  92. 

"Spectacle  class,"  the,  ig6. 

Spirituality,  training  teachers  in,  237  f. 

Spooner,  Edward,  on  sermonettes  for 
children,  327. 

Sporadic  Sunday-schools,  11 1  f. 

Spurgeon,  C.  H.,  on  the  difficulty  of 
preaching  to  children,  340. 

Stalker,  James,  a  preacher  to  children, 
337- 

Standard  of  fitness  for  teaching,  239- 
244. 

Stanley,  Dean  :  his  sermons  to  chil- 
dren, 336,  352. 

Stapfer,  Edmond,  on  Jewish  Bible- 
schools  as  compared  with  modern 
Sunday-schools,  10. 

Statistics:  of  Methodism,  118  ;  of  Sun- 
day-schools :  in  Palestine,  17  f . ;  in 
Great  Britain,  118  f . ;  in  America, 
131-133  ;  in  the  world  at  large,  133, 
138;  in  Germany,  135. 

Steel,  Robert:  his  example  of  un- 
catechised  ignorance,  229. 

Stephen  of  Cloyes,  a  preacher  of  the 
Children's  Crusade,  317. 

St.  George's  Church,  New  York, 
Stephen  H.  Tyng's  Sunday-school 
work  in,  453  f. 

St.  Louis,  C.  L.Goodeirsworkin,262f. 

Stock,  Thomas:  a  helper  oi  Raikes, 
109-111;  his  Sunday-school  at  As- 
bury,  England,  112. 

Stockton-upon-Tees,  a  revival  among 
children  at,  108. 

Stories  in  children's  sermons  should 
be  subordinate,  362  f. 

Storrs,  Richard  S.,  at  a  Brooklyn  Sun- 
day-school meeting,  256. 

St.  Pauls  P.  E.  Church,  Philadelphia, 
Sunday-school  work  in,  252,  288. 

Strangers  brought  into  Sunday-school, 
201. 

Strong  thought,  a,  necessary  to  a  chil- 
dren's sermon,  337  f.,  348-355. 


Strvpe,  John,  on  English  catechisms, 

79-81. 
Studies  to  be  pursued   in  a  normal 

class,  227. 
Subordinates,  consideration  for,  272- 

275- 

Substitute  teachers,  mode  of  securing, 
230,  242  f. 

Summary  of  Jewish  school  law,  14. 

Summerfield,  John  :  his  preaching  to 
children,  369. 

Sunday-school  church,  a,  252  f. 

Sunday-school  society,  a,  organized 
by  Fox  and  Hanway  in  London, 
114. 

Sunday-school,  the:  its  divine  war- 
rant, 74,  183  f.,  192,  197,  313;  its 
essential  features  found :  in  Jewish 
Bible-schools,  4,  10  f.,  15,  43;  in 
early  Christian  schools,  61-63;  i's 
improvement,  119, 136  ;  its  influence 
on  society:  in  Great  Britain,  115- 
121,  154-165;  in  America,  122-127, 
165-176;  in  Ireland,  162  f . ;  in 
single  localities,  127-130;  its  influ- 
ence on  the  family,  145-183;  its  main 
ideas  found:  in  Jesuit  schools,  69; 
in  the  Wesleyan  movement,  108; 
its  management,  190  f.,  205-212;  its 
membership:  in  England,  156-159, 
187  f.;  in  America,  188-190;  as  it 
should  be,  191-205;  its  modern  re- 
vival and  expansion,  109-142,  286  f. ; 
its  origin  (see  Beginnings) ;  its  pas- 
tor and  his  work,  247-276 ;  its  preach- 
ing function,  310-312;  its  teachers, 
their  qualifications  and  training, 
215-244;  its  use  by  non-Protestant 
bodies,  72,  131. 

Superintendent,  the :  his  need  of  a 
teachers'-meeting,  231  f. ;  the  pastor 
ought  not  to  be,  249-251,  255;  the 
pastor's  relation  to,  272-275. 

Supply  of  teachers,  the:  where  and 
how  obtained,  215-231,  239-244. 

Support  of  the  Sunday-school,  to  be 
assumed  by  the  church,  208-211. 

Sympathy,  value  of,  in  a  teacher,  216- 
223. 

Symposium  on  religious  instruction  of 
the  children  of  the  upper  classes  in 
England,  157  f. 

Synagogue  Bible-schools.  See  Jew- 
ish Bible-schools. 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


413 


Synagogue,  the:  called  a  school,  16; 
its  Bible-school,  4-29,  152  f. ;  Jesus 
in,  32  f. ;  not  a  place  for  public  wor- 
ship, 11;  served  as  model  for  the 
Church,  37,  41,  47;  statistics  of, 
17  f. 

Taking-IN    exercise   by    children, 

197  f. 
Talbot,    Bp.,   on   the   Sunday-school 

and  the  family,  149  f. 
Talitha  Ciimi,  Dean  Stanley's  sermon 

on,  352. 
Talmud,  the:    Bible-schools  in,  5-32, 

152  f.,  183;  citations  from,  16,  21- 

29,  36,  281. 
Taylor,  Jeremy  :  his  sermon  on  "The 

Foolish  Exchange,"  351. 
Taylor,  William  M. :  on  setting  others 

at  work,  251;    on  C.   L.   Goodell, 

262. 
Teachers,  Christian,   in    the    Early 

Church:  included  laymen  and 

women,   61;    shut   out   from   the 

schools,  49;  the  individual  work  of, 

48-51- 

Teachers'-meeting,  the  :  example  of  a, 
259  f. ;  its  feasibility,  236  f. ;  its 
methods,  233-236  ;  its  necessity, 
231  f.,  236  f. 

Teachers,  Sunday-school :  appointing 
of,  206  f.,  243  ;  at  first  paid,  no,  119, 
123,133  f . ;  beginning  of  voluntary, 
119;  fashionablepeopleas,  ii4f. ;  in- 
stalling of,  238  f.,  243  ;  opportunities 
for  preaching  by,  311  f . ;  qualifica- 
tions of,  216-223;  supply  of,  215  f, 
222-224,  239-242 ;  training  of,  223- 
238. 

Teaching:  by  individuals,  48-51 ;  dis- 
tinct from  preaching,  32  f.,  36,  38, 
54,  59,  224-230;  enjoined  in  the 
Great  Commission,  36-44,  63,  193; 
necessar)'  to  maintain  the  results  of 
a  reformation,  67 ;  part  of  a  preach- 
er's training,  68,  258;  the  Church's 
progress  by  means  of,  50  f.,  66-73. 

Teachmg  methods,  a  pastor  should  be 
trained  in,  268  f. 

"Teaching  pulpit,"  the,  224-226. 

Telegraph  operator,  illustration  of  the, 
366  f. 

Telling  is  not  teaching,  228  f. 

Temple,  the:  its  school,  29  f . ;  Jesus 
in,  29-31. 


Ten    Commandments,  the,  recitative 

exercise  upon,  259,  373. 
Tennent,    Gilbert:    his    mention    by 

Whitefield,  93. 
Tertullian :  his  reference  to  Christian 

teachers,  49;  his  sermon  on  "The 

Duty  and    Rewards   of  Patience," 

SSI- 
Text  of  a  sermon  to  children,  the,  355, 

366. 
Theological   education,   the   place    of 

Sunday-school  work  in,  141  f.,  268  f., 

342-344- 
Threefold    meaning   of  "preaching," 

309-311. 
Tiberias,  synagogues  in,  17. 
Time  for  holding  a  normal  class,  227. 
Time  for  Sunday-school  exercises,  to 

be  given  by  the  church,  208  f. 
Timothy,    the   early   training   of,    42, 

152  f. 
Tiring   a   child-audience,    danger   of, 

370  f. 
Tithing-man,   the,   in    New   England, 

174.  314  f- 

Todd,  John:  his  sermons  to  children, 
335.  351  f-'  368;  on  the  difficulty  of 
preaching  to  children,  338  f. 

Torrey,  Samuel,  on  neglect  of  family 
religion  in  New  England,  181. 

Total -abstinence  societies,  juvenile, 
290  f. 

Townley,  Richard,  Robert  Raikes's 
letter  to,  112. 

Traditions  of  the  Bible-school,  4-6. 

Training-class  for  intending  teachers, 
need  and  methods  of  a,  226-230. 

Training  Sunday-school  teachers: 
feasibility  of,  216,  236  f. ;  importance 
of,  223  f.,  226  f.,  231  f. ;  methods  of, 
224-236. 

Training,  three  factors  in,  279  f.,  283, 
306. 

Training  up  a  child,  Bible  teachings 
concerning,  281. 

Training  young  Christians  in  disciple- 
ship,  283,  287,  292-300. 

Tremellius  and  Junius,  on  the  train- 
ing of  Abram's  servants,  6  f. 

Trimmer,  Mrs.,  a  co-worker  with 
Robert  Raikes,  114. 

Trumbull,  J.  Hammond:  his  re- 
searches in  the  history  of  primary 
religious  instruction,  64  f.,  88,  90. 


414 


TOPICAL  INDEX. 


Turner,  William :  his  early  plea  for 
Sunday-schools,  no,  113. 

Tyng,  Stephen  H. :  as  a  Sunday-school 
pastor,  252-256;  his  address  in  Ply- 
mouth Church,  256-258;  his  chil- 
dren's services,  325  f. ;  his  sermon- 
outline  on  Josiah,  356  f. 

Uhlhorn,  Gerhard  :  his  proofs  of  the 
care  of  children  by  the  Early  Church, 

153.  375- 

"Unconscious  Influence,"  Horace 
Bushnell's  sermon  on,  351. 

Understanding  the  minister,  a  child's 
delight  in,  331. 

Unevangelized  districts,  to  be  reached 
by  Sunday-schools,  203-205. 

Uniqueness  of  Christianity  in  its  ex- 
altation of   childhood,  374-377. 

Universities  of  England:  their  reli- 
gious condition  in  the  eighteenth 
century,    105. 

University,  the  local  church  as  a,  248  f. 

Upper  classes  in  England,  children  of 
the,  not  in  Sunday-school,  156-159. 

Urwick,  Dr.,  on  the  influence  of  Sun- 
day-schools in  Ireland,  163. 

Usher,  Abp. :  his  estimate  of  catechis- 
ing, 41,  68,  84. 

V.^UGHAN,  Canon,  on  the  culture  of 
child  piety,  297  f. 

Vincent,  Bp.  John  H.,  on  teachers' 
covenants,  239. 

Vitringa,  Campegius,  on  the  syna- 
gogue, 18,  20. 

Volumes  of  sermons  to  children,  329, 

333-337- 
Voluntary    Sunday-school     teachers, 
119,  133  f. 

Wadsworth,  Charles,  on  a  child's 
capacity  to  comprehend  great  truths, 
218  f. 

Waldenses:  their  interest  in  Bible- 
teaching,  65  f.,  220,  224. 

Wales,  influence  of  the  Sunday-school 
in,  163-165,  188. 

"Walking  with  God,"  John  C.  Hill's 
sermon  on,  357. 

Walnut  Street  Sunday-school:  its 
method  of  Christmas  giving,  290. 

Waste  places  of  New  England,  Ly- 
man Beecher's  sermon  on,  123  f. 


Waterbury,  J.  B.,  on  John  Summer- 
field's  preaching,  369. 

Watteville,  Baron:  founds  "  The  Or- 
der of  the  Grain  of  Mustard  Seed," 
287. 

Watts,  Isaac:  his  protests  against 
rote-recitations  of  the  catechism, 
77,  85-87. 

Wayland,  Francis:  his  tribute  to  Sun- 
day-schools, 124  f. 

Webster,  Noah :  his  definition  of 
"  preaching,"  310. 

Week-day  schools  originally  Bible- 
schools:  in  New  England,  87  f. ; 
in  Palestine,  16. 

Wesley,  Charles:  his  early  Sunday- 
school  work,  118. 

Wesley,  John  :  an  individual  reformer, 
113  f;  compared  with  Whitefield, 
93;  his  adoption  and  use  :  of  class- 
meetings,  93,  106-109,  287;  of  the 
Sunday-school,  118;  his  "Estimate 
of  the  Manners  of  the  Present 
Time,  "ii5f. ;  his  ideal  of  a  church, 
220;  his  opinion  of  the  Sunday- 
school,  118;  his  work  among  chil- 
dren, 106-108,  320,  333  f. ;  revivals 
under,  93,  106-108,  115  f. 

Westminster  Abbey,  children's  ser- 
vices in,  324. 

Westminster  Assembly :  did  not  de- 
sign its  catechism  to  be  memorized 
unintelligently,  77,  81-83. 

Westminster  Shorter  Catechism  :  not 
to  be  memorized  unintelligently, 
81-88. 

"  What  Faith  is,  and  what  its  Use  is," 
John  Todd's  sermon  on,  351  f. 

What  to  teach,  a  teacher  must  know, 
223. 

Wheelock,  Eleazer :  his  Sunday- 
school  beginnings  in  Columbia, 
Conn.,  112. 

White  Cross  Army,  291. 

White  Ribbon  Army,  291. 

Whittington  Church,  East  London, 
children's  services  in,  369. 

Whitefield,  George:  compared  with 
Wesley,  93;  revivals  under,  93,  loi, 
106, 180. 

WicUfites:  their  interest  in  Bible- 
teaching,  65. 

Wilberforce,  William,  Hannah  More's 
correspondence  with,  155. 


TOPICAL  IXDEX. 


415 


Willard,  Samuel,  on  neglect  of  family 
worship  in  New  England,  181. 

William  and  Mary  College,  infidelity 
in,  early  in  this  century,  167. 

Williams,  Thomas,  on  morals  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  loi  f. 

Winchester,  the  Dean  of,  on  the  re- 
ligious teaching  of  the  children  of 
tlie  upper  classes  in  England,  158  f. 

Winslow,  Myron:  his  wife's  work  in 
Nor\wich,  Conn.,  127-129. 

Womenas  teachers,  61,  no,  114^,220. 

Woodruff,  Albert :  his  work  for  Sun- 
day-schcJ*»ls  in  Europe,  134-136. 

Wordsworth,  Bp.  John  :  his  estimate 
of  Julian  the  Apostate's  plans,  49. 

W^ork,  gain  of,  to  church-members, 
220,  251. 

Worship,  the  service  of,  the  pastor 
responsible  for,  249  f. 

"Worth  of  the  Soul,  The,"  W.  S. 
Plumer's  sermon  on,  352. 

Wyclif,  John,  an  English  catechism 
by,  64  f. 

Xavier,  St.  Francis:  his  work  for 
children,  69,  71  f.,  106. 


Yale  College :  its  president,  139,  248  ; 

religion  in,  166  f.,  172;  Yung  Wings 

coimection  with,  365. 
Yale  Divinity  School,  3,  141,  340. 
Young  Communicants'  Class,  293. 
Young  Men's  Christian  Associations, 

293- 
Young   people,  how  retained  in   tlu^ 

Sunday-school,  196. 
Young  People's  Society  of  Christian 

Endeavor,  295  f.,  301. 
Young   teachers    preferable   to   older 

ones,  216-222. 
Young   Women's   Christian   Associa- 
tions, 293. 
Yung  Wing:    his    educational  work, 

364  f. 

Z.'VKKAI,  Jochanan  b.  :  his  question- 
ing process,  21. 

Zinzendorf,  Count :  his  co-workers, 
287;  his  preaching  to  children, 
106  f.,  320. 

Zwingle,  Ulrich :  his  interest  in  the 
Bible-school  idea,  08. 


Date  Due 


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